Hey Prabhu! Can we have our commuter rail?

A lot is riding for Bengaluru on the Railway Budget,  2016-17 which will be presented on Thursday. The city could see a commuter rail at last take shape should the budget allocate funds for it. But there may not be many more goodies for the state, going by railway sources.

With the Metro Rail still hobbling along, Bengalureans are awaiting Thursday’s  railway budget with much anticipation as it could announce the long  awaited commuter rail for the city to ease traffic on its roads and make the air over it easier to breathe with  lesser vehicular emissions.

The city’s hopes are up as during his recent visit to the state for Invest Karnataka-2016, Union railway minister, Suresh Prabhu had dropped broad hints about the railway budget making an allocation for a commuter rail for Bengaluru.  Chief Minister Siddaramaiah too has revealed that Mr. Prabhu promised to actively consider the project after he wrote to him and all MPs from the state  in January to give it some priority.

Several residents welfare associations too have been campaigning for the commuter rail, which could be implemented as a joint venture between the state and the railways should it receive the green signal..

Officers of the South Western Railway (SWR) are reassuring. In their view even if  Mr. Prabhu does not announce any other new project for the state, a commuter train is almost certain for the city. “The state government has taken the issue very seriously with Bengaluru development minister, KJ George holding several rounds of  talks on it. The first phase of the commuter train requires '.9,000 crores. Fingers are crossed,” said an officer.

Union chemical and fertiliser minister, Ananth Kumar who represents Bengaluru South in  parliament, recalls that the demand for a commuter rail goes back to 1996. He is all for it himself.  “Both the state and Union governments should implement the projects at the earliest as it could help decongest the city,” he said.  Another important  project Bengaluru has long hoped for is expansion of the city railway station.  But whether this will receive any place in the rail budget is anybody’s guess. “The city needs a third railway terminal. Although many trains arrive at the city railway station on time, they take 20 to 25 minutes just to reach  their stipulated platform from the entry point. This is a waste of time. If more terminals are added, this problem could be solved,' said Mr. Manikumar Aiyer, a daily commuter between Bengaluru and Mysuru.

However, not willing to give any false hopes on this front, a SWR officers says although Karnataka has a long wish list, the railway minister may not announce any  new projects other than the commuter rail for it. “This budget is expected to give more importance to technology upgradation, improving  passenger amenities, safety of passengers and improving  revenue collection,” he added.

A new train between namma Ooru, Mangaluru is the need of the hour
The last railway budget had proposed a  speed train between Bengaluru and Mysuru  but technical issues came in the way. The railway technical committee shot it down saying it was not feasible on this stretch. Disappointed commuters now want at least more  non- stop trains between the two cities to cut down travel time.

“There are no express trains between Mysuru and Bengaluru in the early hours of the day. Delay in the shifting of Tipu’s armoury has been holding this up. But the railways must at least now think of introducing new trains after shifting the armoury,” says Mr. Madhu Udupa, a bank employee, who travels between the two cities every day.

With the South Western Railwy  expected to complete the Hassan-Bengaluru stretch of the railway line this year, passengers are also hoping for  more direct trains between Bengaluru and Mangaluru. “When Mr DV Sadananda Gowda presented an interium railway budget in  2014 he proposed a train between Bengaluru and Mangaluru , but we don’t have it even now.  The issue is now before the state high court.  The SWR must introduce this train on the new Bengaluru-Hassan- Mangalurue  route,” says  Mr. Vishal Shetty , a frequent rail passenger from Mangaluru.

Elsewhere in the state, with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) clearing the Hubli-Ankola railway line,  held up for  nearly 20 years owing to environmental concerns,  locals want to see it become a reality soon as it will connect North Karnataka and Hyderabad Karnataka with the coastal regions of the state, helping industry and business greatly.

Subsidy in Railways needs a serious rethink: G. Sridhar Pabbisetty,  
CEO of Namma Bengaluru Foundation
Union Railways Minister,  Suresh Prabhu  made a departure of sorts in last year’s railway budget by not announcing any new trains. Moving from populism to pragmatism is what everyone is looking forward to in this year’s railway budget as well.

The first railway budget for India was presented in 1924 based on Sir William Mitchell Acworth’s report on the Indian Railways. It was the year when railway finances were separated from the general finances. Today however very few countries have the tradition of a railway budget.

C. Raja Mohan observed last year that while China had quadrupled its railway network from 27,000 kms to over 1,10,000 kms post 1947, we have managed to add a mere 11,000 kms since Independence to our once enviable 54,000 km network. The process of capacity addition and speed improvisation needs to continue to enable us to effectively leverage the utility of the railways.

Subsidy in Indian Railways needs a serious rethink as well . Several categories of freight that enjoy subsidy should be rationalized and phased out in a time -bound manner. A significant amount goes to subsidise intra- city travel in  Mumbai, Chennai and other cities. Deconstructing this subisidy and making the intra-city facility available to all metropolitan cities as a planned contribution by the nation should be the way forward. Premium classes in long distance trains need to be fully priced to ensure that subsidy goes to those who cannot afford the fare.

Removal of urban subsidies will not just rationalise the spend by government in urban transport,  but will also make other commuter rail systems viable for other upcoming cities and they will become attractive for investments. This will help improve cost benefit calculation for other forms of transport that will become available in the future. The social cost of various subsidies - carrying essential commodities below cost, subsidising passenger services and  son on - is around Rs 24,886 crore each year.

Pragmatic pricing will improve the confidence our markets have in our railways and will open up newer funding sources.  Once a reliable financial model develops, the cost of capital will eventually turn southwards. Unless this change happens, the railways will find it tough to mobilise funds for much needed infrastructure investment.