PRESS CONFERENCE: S S Khurana, Railway Board chairman

Railway Board chairman S S Khurana, while enumerating the key initiatives of the budget, was unable to give details on the nitty gritty of the new services announced on Friday, which he said would need to be worked out. Excerpts from a press conference in Rail Bhawan.

Freight grew by 5 per cent last year but you have now set a target of 5.5 per cent. How will it be achieved in the slowdown?
We could not achieve our freight target in the third and fourth quarter of 2008-09. The economy is looking up now. June freight loading rose 9 per cent. So, I believe we will be able to surpass the target.

Click here for Cloud Computing

Also Read   Related Stories News Now - Satyam again - Mamata boards PPPs to boost development, revenues - Infra ind eyes projects to develop railway stations - South likely to get Rs 2183 cr port projects - Shipping ministry looks to expand six port expansion projects - PPT signs pact for iron ore terminal

Also Read   Related Stories News Now - Markets end lower on profit booking - HSBC India CEO Davis to move to Singapore in March - Black money estimates lack evidence: Swiss Embassy - Markets end lower amid weak global cues - World stocks fall on delays in Greek bailout More

How aggressively do you plan to augment track capacity and have you decided on the equity in the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode?
Capacity is a major issue with Indian Railways. Even the budget has announced plans to augment capacity. Nothing has been decided on equity in the PPP mode.

Do you plan to introduce new rolling stock for the Yuva trains?
This will be a train with only seating accommodation and would be an all-day train. The details of the service are still being worked out but we expect it to be popular.

Mamata Banerjee in her Budget speech said of the provision of Rs 3,400 crore resource mobilisation through PPP, Rs 3,300 crore did not materialise. Why?
That statement was from our earlier experiences, where our contractors walked away from the project. The minister had announced that a committee would work out the structure of the PPP initiatives.

Are you also taking the multi-functional complexes and Adarsh stations on PPP?
We are still looking at these initiatives and the mode will be decided subsequently.

Will the revised Tatkal structure lead to a fall in your revenues?
The Tatkal quota is 12.5 per cent of all berths. With this revision, it would become cheaper and increase the number of people buying such tickets; hence, increasing our earnings.

New Ipad Application :Business Standard's all new IPad App Click here to download for free Other Stories      - Markets end lower on profit booking - HSBC India CEO Davis to move to Singapore in March - Black money estimates lack evidence: Swiss Embassy - Markets end lower amid weak global cues - World stocks fall on delays in Greek bailout

Tags : Railwauy budget | PRESS CONFERENCE | S S Khurana | PPP |   Read Business news in  Advertisements -  Now property search gets more exciting than ever before! -  High Growth Business Opportunities in Africa - Register to explore -  Medium-sized businesses are the engines of a smarter planet. -  We live for our family. have you secured them? -  Office 365 for professionals and small businesses. -  Earn fuel worth Rs.2400 with Citi -  India's No. 1 Property Site. Click here to know more.. -  Diseases earlier, Saving Costs, Extending Lives. Know More.. -  Get 5% cashback on telephone bills with Citi -  Enjoy the journey as much as the destination. click to know more.. -  Exim Bank Conclave on India - Africa Project Partnership. Know more.. -  Be part of it The World's Largest Aircraft. -  Creating Wealth made simple the SIP way. Know more.. -  Only Developer to give a guarantee on time space & rate. -  Buy Your Property with Our Triple Guarantee in India. -  Improve Patient Care & Experience. Click here to know more -  Win a Business Class Ticket to Europe..Know more.. -   Introduce a New Automotive Luxury Car.. know more -  Health is Wealth..... Insurance + Savings... Know More...