Rlys turnaround in five years: Prabhu

Railway minister Suresh Prabhu dedicated the Rail Budget to the ´aam aadmi,´ saying that there would be a turnaround of the Railways in the next five years. The Lok Sabha recently passed the demand of grants for the Railways. ´The Rail Budget has kept the aam aadmi in its focus. We seek to carry more passengers by augmenting the capacity, while enhancing the passenger amenities,´ Prabhu said, while replying to discussion on the demand for the grants. The Minister also said that his ministry seeks to involve states in execution of projects. He said that the big investments for the turnaround of the ´bleeding´ and ´sinking´ railways are essential and there is no threat of getting it into debt trap. He stated that his ministry is work-¡ing on a five-year action plan for execution of projects so that these are ´not forgotten´. ´The Railways has not been able to meet the regional aspirations due to lack of funds. But this budget has tried to address it,´ said Prabhu, while adding that the Railways proposes to join hands with states to execute rail projects to fulfill regional aspirations. Many states have already written to him and MoUs would be signed soon, he added.