Rail Budget 2016 highlights: Watch Minister of State Manoj Sinha in conversation with Jai Mrug

(To listen to the audio please unmute the player. Please tweet your questions for the minister @firstpost using the hashtag #RailBudget) Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Thursday presented the budget for 2016-17 in Lok Sabha today but held back from raising passenger fares and freight rates promising to exploit new sources of revenue beyond tariff revenue. “These are challenging times, toughest time; facing dual headwinds,” said the ministe. He said the core objective of the railways is to become engine of economic growth, create employment and provide customer service. [caption id=“attachment_2642952” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Union Minister Manoj Sinha. PIB[/caption] Here are the highlights: * Minister sees operating ratio of 92 percent in FY17 as against 90 percent in current year * Rs 8,720 cr saving in 2015-16 budget in fuel cost like power * The railways have ramped up capital expenditure to remove the huge backlog and provide for future needs; rate of capital expenditure has increased * Investment proposed in 2016-17 at Rs 1.21 lakh crore, higher from Rs 1 lakh crore last year. * Proposes to commission 2,800 km of new tracks in next year * Outlay for railway electrification increased by 50 percent; 2,000 km route to be electrified next fiscal * 2000 km rail route to be electrified in 2016-17 * Railways to get Rs 40,000 cr budgetary support from the government * Railways to increase lower berth quota for senior citizens by 50 percent * Ajmer, Amritsar, Gaya, Mathura, Nanded, Nashik, Puri, Tirupati, Varanasi, Nagapattinam and other pilgrim stations to be beautified * Two elevated suburban railway corridors - Churchgate-Virar and CST-Panvel to be constructed in Mumbai; Ring railway covering 21 stations to be revived with state participation. * India’s first railway auto hub in Chennai to be inaugurated soon * Logistics and warehouse parks to be created on PPP mode * Station development and re-development, monetisation of land to raise rail revenue from non-freight sources * Rs 30,000 crore is the loss on subsidising passenger fares, says Railway Minister * Railways to shift to completely paperless contract system in 2016-17, says minister * Bar-coded tickets to be introduced at select stations on pilot basis * E-booking of tickets on concessional passes for journalists introduced * Cleaning of coach on demand to be introduced; Disabled enabled toilet in 11 Class-A stations this year * 33 percent reservation to women in reserved quota in Railways will be introduced * Children menu to be introduced on pilot basis on trains * North-South, East-West dedicated freight corridor proposed in Railway Budget for 2016-17 * Three direct services - fully air-conditioned Humsafer to travel at 130-km per hour * Bar-coded tickets to be introduced at select stations on pilot basis * Overnight double-decker train Uday Express to be introduced on busiest routes, carrying capacity to be 40 percent more * Propose to start cancellation through 139. Bar-coded tickets will be issued on a pilot basis. This is aimed at reining in the menace of ticket less travel and also making travel hassle-free. * 400 railway stations to be equipped with wifi, 100 this year * 124 MPs have committed to contribute from MPLADS for passenger amenities. With inputs from PTI Here are the highlights of the speech: