Rail Budget 2016 Brings Cheers To Common Man

By siliconindia | Monday, 29 February 2016, 06:09 Hrs

BANGALORE: Announcing the Rail budget for the second time in his tenure, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu emphasized upon uplifting the satisfaction quotient of the train travelers. Starting from no fare hike to smart coaches and ticketing facilities for unreserved travel, Prabhu’s announcement encapsulates array of measures to make that journey a fine experience for commuters.

We list down eleven such features which can bring a smile to common man:

1) For the unreserved passenger: Suresh Prabhu Introduced Antyodaya Express and Deen Dayalu coaches, for long distance travel, and comes with fully unreserved and superfast train features for the common man. These trains would be operated in dense routes.

2) For the reserved passenger - Humsafar, Tejas and UDAY: For the reserved passengers, Humsafar, Tejas and UDAY were announced in Rail Budget 2016. These trains are deemed to ensure cost recovery by way of tariff and non-tariff measures. Humsafar would be fully air-conditioned third AC service with an extra service for meals.

3) No fare hike: Suresh Prabhu’s 2016 Railway Budget spared passengers and goods movement from any hike in tariffs. Prabhu promised rationalizing of the tariff structure.

4) SMART Coaches: In another announcement made, Railways is planning to re-design the layout of coaches to enable higher carrying capacity and arrangement of new conveniences like automatic doors, bar-code readers, bio-vacuum toilets, water-level indicators, accessible dustbins, ergonomic seating, improved aesthetics, vending machines, entertainment screens, LED lit boards for advertising, PA system and more.

5) Ticketing facilities: In 2016, Railways Plan to acquire sale of tickets through hand held terminals for the benefit of the suburban and short distance travelers. E-ticketing facility will be introduced in next 3 months which would cater to foreign debit/credit cards for foreign tourists and NRIs. Bar coded tickets, scanners and access control on a pilot basis on major stations to tackle the menace of ticketless travel and ensure hassle free travel for passengers will be introduced. Railways is intending to integrate all ticketing facilities into two mobile apps; one dealing with all ticketing issues and the other for receipt and rectification of complaints and suggestions related to all the services they offer.