my small letter to rm:
(pls note its concentrated on mumbai & goa)
your valuable comments awaited
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the hon. minister of railways,
rail...
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bhavan,
new delhi

date: 07/01/2013

sir,

railway budget 2012-13

at the outset, i wish to congratulate you on taking up such a prestigious post of railway minister and also wish you all success in this impressive assignment.

as the railway budget is round the corner with the inter railway time table committee (irttc) scrutinizing the requirement / augmentation /extension of train services (source: the hindu), i wish to put forth a few of the urgent requirements in the west & south that ought to be looked into urgently.

1. introduction of new trains:
a. mumbai cstm – new delhi tri-weekly siddhivinayak rajdhani express (via kyn – bpl -et)
b. mumbai cstm –madgaon tri weekly rajdhani (via rn – pnvl -kyn – bpl - et)
c. mumbai – chennai tri-weekly ac superfast
d. mumbai – bangalore tri-weekly ac superfast (via rn – mao - ld - ubl)
e. mumbai – madgaon triweekly shatabdi express / ac superfast
f. mumbai – patna biweekly ac superfast (via jbp – mgs)
g. vasco – nagpur biweekly (via rn – pnvl –pune – bsl)
h. mumbai – velankanni bi-weekly superfast
i. madgaon - ahmedabad ac superfast (via rn –pnvl – bsr – st)
j. mumbai - nagpur /bhopal triweekly ac double decker superfast.
k. sainagar shirdi –mangalore jn biweekly superfast (via mmr – kyn – rn – mao)
l. sainagar shirdi –trivandrum central biweekly superfast (via mmr – kyn – pnvl - rn –mao – clt – srr – ern -kyj)

2. extension/ conversion /increase in frequency/ change in timings of trains:
a. 12431/32 trivandrum – h. nizamuddin tri-weekly rajdhani express to be increased to 5 days a week. there is a 2 hour speeding up scope for this train in wr / wcr/nr during monsoon. further, timings for 12432 to be revised as it crosses kerala in dead of night. it can be made to depart at 19:00 hours from h. nizamuddin in all seasons.
b. 12201/02 ltt – kcvl garib rath to be increased to 4 days a week from biweekly presently.
c. conversion of 12223/24 ltt – ers ac duronto to ac superfast with same run timings and halts at thane, panvel, ratnagiri, sawantwadi, madgaon, karwar, udupi, mangalore, kannur, kozhikode, shornur & trichur stations. monsoon timings of 12223/24 should be revised as 12224 arrives ltt at midnight. instead it can be pre-poned to arrive ltt by 22:30 hours. this will generate 80% patronage (throughout the year) better than 30% - 40 % at present. services can thereafter be increased to 4 days a week.
d. 17311/12 vasco chennai express to be increased to triweekly from weekly presently
e. 17315/16 vasco velankanni express to be increased to triweekly from weekly presently

apart from the above, doubling & electrification of kr & cr (pune – rn – sbc section) & dc – ac conversion in cr are also required to be accorded the top priority.
last but not the least, railways requires to take extra care of passengers and treat them as their customers. to start with it should ensure punctual, safe, clean and hygienic travel. food / beverages served in trains & stations ought to be of utmost quality. passengers are willing to shell out high price, provided they are provided with clean, quality and hygienic food. for these, periodic inspection of pantry contractors is a must. a health inspector must inspect and a certificate of continuation should be given to these contractors quarterly. beggars, eunuchs & stray dogs should be discouraged and prohibited entry at railway stations. with every effort, every railway station (major stations to start with) & every train should achieve an iso certification. only then will indian railways come into focus internationally in positive manner.

hoping for a positive action from your end. wishing you all the very best in all your endeavors.

thanking you,

regards,
svi