The Hindu Business Line : Work on auto hubs by Rlys inaugurated

The Railway Minister, Ms Mamata Banerjee, on Saturday kicked off at Shalimar station here the work on the first of a total 10 automobile hubs to be set up by the Railways across the country.

Identifying the other nine locations as Siliguri, Guwahati, Chennai, Pune, Nashik, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, New Delhi and Kerala, Miss Banerjee expressed optimism that the Railways could hope to augment its revenue earnings by an estimated Rs 1,000 crore annually once these hubs became operational.

The hubs, as she indicated, would be launched in partnership with the Society for Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SAIM). Some 20 representatives of SIAM were present at the function, including those from Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Hero Honda, TVS Motors and a Tata Motors subsidiary.

It might be recalled that Mr Ratan Tata , Chairman of Tata Motors, had held the Singur agitation responsible for his company's exit from the small car project in West Bengal. The agitation was spearheaded by Ms Banerjee.

The Railways, Ms Banerjee pointed out, accounted for a meagre two per cent share of the country's automobile transportation. “We want to raise our share to 15 per cent in the coming years with the target to achieve 50 per cent gradually,” she added.

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