Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav has termed the 2015-16 Rail budget as disappointing and said that the needs of a large state like UP has been totally overlooked by the Rail minister. The CM accused the BJP-led Union government of step-motherly treatment with the state, even as the state had returned 71 MPs of the party in the 2014 lok Sabha polls.
“UP does not figure in the priorities of Rail minister Suresh Prabhu even as the Prime Minister, Home minister, Defence minister, Minister of state for Railways and several other ministers in the Union cabinet are from UP,” said Yadav.
The CM said that the Rail minister ignored several proposals submitted to the ministry to meet the needs of the state. “But instead of addressing the needs of UP, the Rail minister deferred them to be taken up under National rail plan of 2030. This shows that the minister is not serious about UP,” said Yadav.
“Recently I had urged the Railway minister to include some important proposals for the larger interest of the people for UP, but he ignored them,’’ said the CM.
Questioning the long term plan for 2030, Yadav said that the preparation of a corporate plan for increasing efficiency and quality is all right, but the Railways should have expressed its commitment towards its social responsibilities..
Meanwhile, BJP leader in UP legislative Council, Hridya Naryan Dikshit said that the during the previous Congress led regime only Amethi and Rae Bareli figured in the priorities of Railway ministry. The NDA government has taken special care of UP with 45 per cent projects sanctioned in next year’s budget being for the state and 26 new rail lines have been sanctioned for UP at the cost of over Rs 26,000 crore besides electrification of five rail lines at the cost of Rs 732 crore.
Dikshit said that the Railway minister has set a new record by laying 7 km of new rail lines per day and the same is targeted to be increased to 13 km per day which was earlier 4 km per day.
He said that in 2015-16, as many as 1,600 km of rail tracks were electrified and the next year 2,000 km of tracks are to be electrified.