New rail minister Suresh Prabhu promises to deliver on safety, customer satisfaction

He takes over at a time when declining passenger volumes and higher freight rates have squeezed earnings

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government’s new Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, who assumed charge on Monday, promised all-round development of the national transporter with a special focus on safety and customer satisfaction.

Prabhu, who broke his 18-year tie with the Shiv Sena to join the Bharatiya Janata Party before being sworn in, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted the railways’ condition to change. “Our focus areas will be customer service and railway safety,” he said. Rail ministry officials hailed the statement.

He added the government in the past had faced many challenges in running the railways but the transporter has enough potential. “Railways are an integrating factor of the economy. Addressing the concerns of the railways workforce will be a priority,” Prabhu, who replaced D V Sadananda Gowda, said.

Prabhu will be heading the ministry at a time when declining passenger volumes, coupled with higher freight rates, have squeezed earnings, even as fuel and manpower costs have led to the ballooning of expenditure. Amid these constraints, the railways is struggling to meet the current financial year’s targeted operating ratio of 92 per cent.

The 61-year old is credited with initiating big-ticket reforms as power minister, including the Electricity Act of 2003, under then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Prabhu had earlier taken charge of the environment and forest portfolio in 1998 in the Vajpayee government, before being given the chemicals and fertilisers ministry in 1999. A year later, Prabhu was handed the charge of the power ministry before being made the Chairman of the Task Force on inter-linking of river projects. He also handled the Heavy Industries portfolio in the Vajpayee regime.

Under Modi, Prabhu was first appointed the Chairman of the Advisory Group on Integrated Development of Power, Coal and Renewable Energy and later appointed the "Sherpa" to assist the PM at the upcoming G20 summit in Brisbane. He had recently cancelled his visit to Wharton School as a mark of protest against the cancellation of Modi's keynote address at the Wharton India Economic Forum 2013.

Prabhu's selection in the Modi's cabinet has apparently irked Shiv Sena whose 25 year old tie with the BJP has been on a downslide recently. BJP had formally snapped ties with Shiv Sena on 25 September, three weeks before the October 15 assembly elections in Maharashtra.