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The trade and industry in the State has hailed the Railway Budget especially at the announcement made by the Minister on the Kainjikode coach factory as well as the wagon factory at Cherthalla.
Mr P. Pratapachandran, President of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the Minister has made an earnest attempt to present the budget this year with a broader outlook without hiking passenger fares and freight rates.
Kerala, he said, is privileged with the allotment of 12 new trains. The important among them are Chennai Trivandrum Duranto Express, Dibrugar Trivandrum Kanyakumari Express, Howrah-Mangalore Express etc., and this would help connect Kerala with the north-eastern states.
Suburban services
Considering the importance of Kochi as a fast developing port city, he suggested that the Railways should start suburban train services from Ernakulam Junction to all directions. It is highly regrettable that the proposals and funds allotted for those were not utilised fully in the State. However, there was no proposal to enhance the basic infrastructural development of Railways, he said.
Absence of proposals for new lines and multiplication of lines are the negative pointsof the budget. There is a limited proposal for increased private sector participation in areas such as manufacture, infrastructure etc, he added.
Safety measures
According to Mr Anand Menon, President of the Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the budget's emphasis on the need to introduce safety measures and the decision to eliminate unmanned level crossings is a very positive and much-needed initiative. The introduction of a new portal for e-ticketing is also timely, he added.
The announcement of two new passenger terminals in Kerala and the introduction of a pan-India multi-purpose smart card is a welcome step, he said.
Kerala Chamber
The Kerala Chamber of Commerce and Industry regretted that there were no measures mooted in the Railway Budget to reduce the train traffic as the railway lines presently in the country are jam packed. In the case of Kerala, the Chamber said that the train traffic is expected to rise with the commencement of operations of the Vallarpadam Container Transhipment Terminal.
Apart from this, Kerala do require a special railway zone, it said in a statement adding that the Railway Ministry should take immediate steps in implementing the coach factory at Palakkad and the wagon unit at Cherthala.
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