The Hindu Business Line : Rail Budget

As usual, Orissa had been neglected in this Rail Budget though the State, with the East Coast Railway headquarters at Bhubaneswar, contributes the highest rail freight earnings. Except for a weekly train between Pondicherry and Bhubaneswar no major route trains were introduced in the State. Even the Multiple Loco Repair Unit at Bhadrak that was to be set up went unnoticed. The electrification of rail line between Bhubaneswar and Kharagpur in the important Coromandel rail route was also not considered. It is high time the Chief Minister approached the Centre for a fair allocation of funds for the State from the Railway Ministry.

R. Sekar

Orissa

The Railway Minister, Mr Lalu Prasad, has probably done a wise thing by reducing fares of air-conditioned class to fight the competition from the airline sector.

But fares can be reduced further by eliminating from the ticket the cost of food.

This will make sense cost-wise as many passengers prefer not to eat from a fixed menu on the train for various reasons. However, the facility to sell packaged food-items may be there in air-conditioned classes as in the non air-conditioned classes.

Madhu Agrawal

New Delhi

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