This refers to the editorial, “Signalling realism”(July 9). Although the rail Budget contains certain desirable features, the rise in fare and freight announced earlier could have been put off for a later date since they are sure to escalate the cost of living. The bullet train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad could have been postponed till the financial health of the Railways improved. There is great need for improvement of toilets, water supply and catering services; these should receive top priority. There is also a need to go into wastage, pilferage and ticketless travel to save revenue. The steps proposed for advance booking are welcome.

TR Anandan

Coimbatore

When we disinvest and raise money we should try and invest in infrastructure. The Railways is one important infrastructure we cannot ignore anymore. We should try to make that investment earn at least 8 per cent return so that we can have a rational business plan for the future. We have money, but we are not using that money for the right purposes. We don’t need bullet trains. And don’t make these bullet trains cheaper than air travel so that airline companies go bankrupt.

CR Arun

Email

Passengers want clean trains, good food, convenient ticket booking service, and the ability to travel when they want. Now, the rail Budget shows that doubling congested tracks could lead to financial returns. If all the proposals mentioned are implemented the results will be exemplary.

TV Jayaprakash

Palakkad, Kerala

The Railway Minister can explore the possibility of getting funds from the public and employees through issue of shares instead of going the FDI route. Let us own our Railways.

KR Raghunathan

Chennai

Sadananda Gowda deserves praise for presenting a pragmatic Budget. It is appreciable that this time, the Budget is not populist.While the move to introduce high speed trains is good, we need proper track maintenance to withstand the load.

Also, the minister did not mention punctuality; trains often run behind schedule making people wait indefinitely. Corruption is another major factor.

Still, if the minister succeeds in turning the Railways into a profit-making organisation, providing hassle-free journeys to users, it would be creditable and worth the increased fares.

Jayant Mukherjee

Kolkata

Conceptually, this year’s Railway Budget did have some vision and refreshing ideas. However additional trains have been granted in a lop-sided manner and some states have been left out.

Ashok Jayaram

Bangalore

It’s an accident

The gas pipeline explosion (on June 27) in Andhra Pradesh was unfortunate. Obviously the GAIL management must accept responsibility for the accident which resulted in the death of several persons. Some NGOs have started saying that the gas pipeline project in Tamil Nadu should be given up. It is necessary to understand that such accidents occur not due to engineering and technology issues but due to lack of care in enforcing safety guidelines. The public should not get confused with an impression that natural gas is harmful and gas transportation should be given up.

NS Venkataraman

Secretary, Chemical Industries Association

Better HR It is difficult to agree with Ganesh Chella that “There is no such thing called HR any more” (July 9). The changes he has described have enlarged the scope of HR and made it more challenging. Even his new “taxonomy” is just a regrouping of HR activities divided into clusters. With more research and easy access to knowledge management HR is evolving but the basic role and functions remain intact. HR has only enriched itself.

YG Chouksey

Pune

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