Prime Minister Narendra Modi categorically denied all speculations about any attempt to privatise Railways and said that the development of Railways was top priority of his Government.
He also said that he wanted to make the big network of Railways and Post Office as tool of overall growth of the nation. He was addressing a function at Diesel locomotive Works (DlW) Stadium on Thursday after flagging off a 4,500 Horse Power (HP) locomotive equipped with several additional facilities. Modi also inaugurated the expansion project worth nearly `300 crore.
“Right from his childhood, Railway is like his family and I want to make it clear that there are no proposals to privatise the Railways,” he said, terming all speculations simply as rumours and nothing else. It may be mentioned that even in DlW some protests were seen in recent days when the employees were raising their strong voices against the possibilities of moves to make this leading production unit of India Railway as a corporation.
The PM said that Railways has a biggest infrastructure and manpower and carry maximum passengers daily in the world and asked the employees why they would not want to make Railways as an organisation become the backbone of Indian economy.
“We can achieve the target by doing technological upgradation and management perfection and making the Railways as service-oriented. He said that Railways can provide huge job opportunities to the people as it is why the Government has decided to set up four Railway universities in different corners of the nation so that the trained and skilled youth can easily serve the Railways,” he added.
For making these plans, he said that the Government needed funds and the same could be received through utilising the huge infrastructure of the Railways in prominent locations across the nation. “But it does not mean that there is any attempt to privatise the Railways,” he made it clear.
Modi said that the Government wanted to open schools and hospitals in rural areas and for the same it needed huge funds and in this direction, Railways could play an important role.
Even in remote areas, Railway stations have electricity and it by setting up two rooms skill development centres are opened there, it can provide job-oriented training to the youth, he said, adding that out railway stations need improvement in amenities and he himself sanctioned funds from his MP quota so that more benches can be set up at Varanasi railway stations and asked his party’s MPs to do the same so that the passengers can sit proper while waiting for their trains.
“I did a survey and found that even old aged passengers waited for hours for their trains standing at platforms due to lack of sitting facilities there,” he said. The PM added that like Railways, he also wanted to utilise huge network of post offices so that they can become the tools of rural development. Recalling the days when India imported even food grain but the ‘son of this soil’ and former Prime Minister lal Bahadur Shastri who gave the call of ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’.
It was lal Bahadur Shastri who had flagged off first locomotive from DlW in 1964 while its foundation stone was led by the then President Dr Rajendra Prasad in 1956. DlW is celebrating its golden jubilee year of making locomotives. Modi expressed happiness that the locomotive he had flagged used 96 percent indigenous equipment and said that he wanted that hundred percentage articles should be made in the country, telling about his call of ‘Make in India’.
In the beginning, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu welcomed the guests while chairman of Railway Board Arunendra Kumar proposed the vote of thanks. The function was also attended by UP health minister Ahmed Hasan and top officers of several zonal railways, including Northern Railways, North-Eastern Railway and East-Central Railways apart from DlW.