ANDALIB AKHTER / NEW DELHI
Railways Minister Piyush Goyal today assured the Lok Sabha that Railways would not be privatized. Replying to a debate on the Demands for Grants, under the control of the Ministry of Railways for 2019-20,Goyal said, the government has accorded high priority to the safety of railway passengers. The minister said, the government has allocated over 5640 crore rupees for passenger safety for this year as against over 2100 crore rupees in 2009.
He hit out at the previous UPA government saying that earlier railway budgets were announced keeping in view of winning elections.
He said, to ensure safety, the Ministry has started manufacturing of LHB coaches. He said if the facilities of the railway are to be increased then it will invest in it naturally by encouraging public-private partnership. He informed that during the last 64 years, cargo has increased by nearly 1300 per cent and passenger traffic has increased by about 1,642 per cent.
Later Lok Sabha passed the Demands for Grants under the control of the Ministry of Railways for 2019-20.