Page 35 - Indian Railways

No hike in rail fares in name of station revamp, says Ashwini Vaishnaw

There has been no hike in fares in the name of station redevelopment project, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said Sunday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the revamp of 508 stations across the country. Vaishnaw said about Rs 25,000 crore needed for the redevelopment project will be allocated through the current Budget, asserting that the project is aimed at facilitating seamless travel for passengers across all strata of society. PM Modi is working to elevate the lives of the common people. The aim of station redevelopment is the same. We want them to have world class stations without any burden. We have not increased fare or fixed a fee in the name of station redevelopment, said Vaishnaw at a press conference here. The Railways has envisaged a plan to redevelop almost 1,300 prime stations in the country as Amrit Bharat Stations'. On Sunday, Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone for 508 Amrit Bharat Stations. In Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan

Lalu Yadav's family: Assets worth Rs 6 cr seized in land-for-jobs case

Enforcement Directorate seized assets in alleged corruption case against former Chief Ministers Lalu Yadav and Rabri Devi, along with Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav

Vande Bharat trains save passengers one hour on journeys, cost 52% more

Vande Bharat trains have been designed to run at speeds of up to 180 kmph, however, a dearth of suitable tracks prevents these trains from reaching their optimum speeds

As part of its revamp plan, Railways to source 8,000 Vande Bharat coaches

One 16-coach trainset generally costs around Rs 130 crore

RailTel posts consolidated income of Rs 483 cr in Q1, PAT jumps to Rs 38 cr

As per the official statement, the Company has posted a YOY growth of 25 per cent in total consolidated revenue with Rs 483 crore in Q1 of FY 24 as against Rs 385 Cr in Q1 of FY 23

Vande Bharat trains register 99% utilisation during FY24 up to June 2023

To ensure maximum utilisation, Zonal railways have been authorised to introduce up to 25 per cent discount on the basic fare in AC chair car and Executive class

'Railways lost Rs 55.6 lakh in damages to stone pelting on Vande Bharat'

Since 2019, the Railways has suffered a loss of more than Rs 55 lakh due to damage caused by stone pelting on Vande Bharat trains, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed Parliament on Wednesday. In a reply to a query in Lok Sabha, Vaishnaw said that in response to such incidents, 151 persons involved in stone pelting have been arrested. No incident leading to the loss of life of a passenger or theft or damage to a passenger's belongings has been reported, he said. "Some incidents of stone pelting incidents have been reported on Vande Bharat trains. During the years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 (up to June), Indian Railways suffered losses of Rs 55.60 lakh due to damage caused to Vande Bharat trains in the incidents of stone pelting," he said. Vaishnaw said that in order to safeguard the lives of passengers and damage to railway property against vandalism, the RPF, in coordination with GRP/District police and civil administration, is conducting OPERATION SATHI in inhabited areas

IRCTC website, mobile app down for hours due to technical reasons; restored

Ticketing service was not available on the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation's (IRCTC) website and mobile application for some hours on Tuesday due to "technical reasons", officials said. The booking issue was later resolved, they said. To make the situation worse for passengers, the unreserved ticketing system (UTS) used for purchasing tickets through the Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs) also developed an undisclosed problem. Several people faced problems in booking tickets since morning. Some people also complained they faced issues while booking tickets through the IRCTC's ticketing partners. "Due to technical reasons, the ticketing service is not available on IRCTC site and app. Technical team of CRIS (Centre for Railway Information Systems) is resolving the issue," the IRCTC tweeted. It also advised passengers to book their tickets on platforms like Amazon, MakeMyTrip, among others. A Central Railway (CR) spokesperson said the IRCTC website had a techn

Railways to start new non-AC permanent trains for lower income groups

These trains will have both general and sleeper classes and will be included in the regular time table, said an official

Railways to offer affordable meals to general coach passengers at Rs. 20

The railways has decided to offer affordable meals and packaged water designed specially for general coach passengers to make their travel experience better, officials said on Wednesday. Counters serving these meals would be placed on platforms aligning with the general coaches, according to an order issued by the Railway Board. The meals have been divided into two categories. The type one includes seven 'pooris' with dry 'aaloo' and pickle for a price of Rs 20. The type two meal would cost Rs 50 and offer passengers something from an assortment of South Indian food such as rice, rajma, chhole, khichdi kulche, bhature, pao-bhaji and masala dosa. The Railway Board has issued instructions to officials concerned to make provision of economy meals and affordable packaged drinking water to be served through counters to be placed at platform near GS coaches. GS coaches refers to the general seating coach. It is a second class unreserved coach. Normally every train including mail/express

RVNL, TMH group told to resolve issues in Vande Bharat sleeper train deal

The issues between the companies will soon be resolved and contracts for making trains will be signed, a top government official said

To avert coal woes, Railways to lower coastal shipping freight rates

First-mile, last mile rail freights account for 71% of coastal shipping costs

Northern Railways cancels several trains due to water-logging along tracks

Diverted trains that are scheduled to depart on Saturday include Jammu Tawi- Jodhpur Express, Dehradun-Amritsar, Dehradun -Saharanpur

Odisha train accident: 3 accused railway officials sent to judicial custody

A special court here has sent the three accused railway officials in the Balasore train disaster to judicial custody, after the end of their CBI remand period. Senior Section Engineer (Signal) Arun Kumar Mahanta, Section Engineer Mohammed Amir Khan and Technician Pappu Kumar, who have been placed under suspension by the Railways, were produced before the CBI Special Court on Friday after their remand period ended. The accused were arrested by the CBI on July 7. The special court had granted five-day remand of the accused to the CBI, which is investigating the case, on July 7. Later, on July 11, the court had extended the remand period for four more days at the request of the investigating agency. The next date of hearing is on July 27. The three accused have been booked under IPC Sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 201 (destruction of evidence), and under Section 153 of the Railways Act. While the CBI is yet to submit its report on the case, the inquiry r

Odisha tragedy: Only 30% opted for world's cheapest travel insurance

Railways' plan, costing just 35 paise per passenger, offers a cover of up to Rs 10 lakh

Weather alert: Check out all the trains canceled due to heavy rainfall

In the midst of severe flooding and water-logging because of constant rainfall, numerous Northern Railroad trains were canceled on Monday

Train fares reduced by up to 25% on several routes: All you need to know

The Railway Board said that the fares have been reduced to optimise the occupancy on several routes

Walkie-talkies: Rlys gets exemption from Make in India procurement policy

This comes after locally sourced technology provided poor communications over increased distances

Heavy rains: 17 trains cancelled, 12 diverted, says Northern Railways

The Northern Railways has cancelled around 17 trains and diverted around 12 others as heavy rains pounded several parts of the region. In a statement, a Northern Railways spokesperson said traffic has been suspended at four locations due to waterlogging. These include sections between Noganwan (Ambala)-New Morinda, between Nangal Dam and Anandpur Sahib and between Kiratpur Sahib and Bharatgarh. "Strict watch is being kept to run trains from the Delhi area safely because of non-stop heavy rains. Eight pumps are being run at the Delhi-Sabzi Mandi area and the station's trainable area to pump water out of tracks. Trains running in the Delhi area are still normal," CPRO Northern Railway Deepak Kumar said. The cancelled trains include Firozpur Cantt Express, Amritsar Super Fast Express, Chandigarh Intercity Express and Chandigarh to Amritsar Junction Express. Those which have been diverted include Mumbai Central to Amritsar Express, Amritsar Express, Daulatpur Chowk Express. In the last

Piyush Goyal to visit UK for FTA negotiations, review progress of TEPA

The India-UK bilateral trading relationship was worth Pound 34 billion in 2022, growing by Pound 10 billion ( Rs 102 crore) in one year