40 days on, Delhi rail babus are yet to answer aayog’s queries

In a stark contrast to the Niti Aayog’s reply to Railways’ financial plan presented for the ambitious Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) III in 48 hours, the railway officials in Delhi clocked 40 days and counting to answer the Aayog’s questions about financial feasibility for the same.

On November 6, the railway ministry had presented the Aayog (the old Planning Commission) their formula of financing the MUTP III. The formula was the same old mathematics of burrowing 49 per cent from the World Bank (WB) while the Railways generated the 51 per cent.

The Aayog had told the railways by November 9 that the financial plan was a little too shaky. It further reminded the Railways that it had argued that Mumbai suburban is one of the heaviest loss-making services when asked about improving passenger amenities.

But the Railways is yet to reply with a new financial plan, as the officials have failed to reach a common understanding yet, said a source.

“It is extremely shameful the way the officers in the Railway Board are behaving about what plan to present to the Aayog. In fact, one of the officers has remarked something along the lines that we will have to do as the railway minister says,” the source said.

The MUTP III projects are vital to the city’s expanding suburbs and increasing population. It will include the doubling of tracks between Panvel and Karjat, an elevated rail-link between Airoli and Kalyan, quadrupling of the lines between Virar and Dahanu and finally the procurement between more local trains.