Zonal railways to give 50% discount

Moreover, the Railway Ministry is also considering further reduction in freight rates that can act as a cushion against an expected increase in inflation.

Rail Bhawan officials said that, "The move to provide discount in the empty flow direction is targeted at attracting more traffic from the road sector. The additional incentive will attract more number of customers to the rail sector and will help generate additional revenues for the Indian Railway that could also compensate for the additional burden created in the wake of recent diesel price hike".

The annual fuel bill of the Indian Railways is set to increase by Rs 560 crore in the remaining 10 months of the current fiscal year on account of the Rs 3 per litre hike for diesel announced yesterday. Currently, the Railways expenditure on account of fuel stands at an average Rs 8,000 crore annualy.

On effecting a freight rate reduction, a Rail Bhawan official said that a decision will be taken only after identifying the areas where the railways can generate more volume and earnings on a competitive basis. In the last few years, the Indian railways through a flurry of incentives and discounts have attracted more number of customers which resulted in a record freight loading of 795 million tonne during the year 2007-08.

Union railway minister, in a  statement issued here today said in the wake of recent diesel price hike, the Indian Railway will not pass Railways additional financial burden on its users