Chennai: Tamil Nadu got five new trains and holiday/festival specials on two routes in the maiden budget presented by Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda in parliament Tuesday.
Of the five new trains, one will be a special tourism circuit train starting from Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and covering pilgrim and tourist places like Bangalore, Chennai, Ayodhya, Varanasi and Haridwar.
The other new trains for Tamil Nadu are: Shalimar – Chennai Premium AC Express; Ahmedabad – Chennai Express (Bi-weekly) via Vasai Road; Jaipur – Madurai Premium Express and Visakhapatnam – Chennai Express (Weekly).
According to Gowda, special train services for Melmaruvathur near here and Velankanni would be introduced in response to requests from public representatives.
Reacting over the budget, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa commended Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda for bringing before the nation the true status of the Indian railways.
Welcoming the proposal to introduce new trains connecting the state with other places, she expressed the hope that priority would be accorded to allocating funds for some of the long-pending projects in Tamil Nadu for their completion.
Jayalalithaa, in a statement issued here, said: “I commend the prime minister and railway minister for having practiced transparency in placing before the country the true status of the Indian railways.”
She said their approach was fiscally responsible and very bold.
“I also expect that, with the priority being accorded to allocating funds to long-pending projects, some of the long-pending projects in Tamil Nadu will also be completed early and the people of the state will benefit,” Jayalalithaa said.
She said the railway budget was a serious exercise at consolidation, which the new central government has been forced to undertake in the wake of the mismanagement of this sector by the UPA government over the past decade.
“The finances of the railways are in extremely poor shape which the railway minister has laid bare with disarming candour and honesty,” she said.
According to Jayalalithaa, having recognised the deep crisis, the railway budget provides a vision for the future.
“The Diamond Quadrilateral High Speed Rail network will be a game changer in terms of providing a transport infrastructure backbone for the country,” she said.
She also welcomed Gowda’s proposal to work closely with the state governments on safety related initiatives like conversion of unmanned level crossings and others.
“This reflects a new working style and culture which will augur well for speedier project implementation,” she added.
Besides, Jayalalithaa urged the central government to hand over the Mass Rapid Transit System network here to Chennai Metro Rail Ltd.
Meanwhile, Two allies in the BJP-led NDA in Tamil Nadu PMK and MDMK have termed the rail budget “disappointing”.
However, another ally DMDK welcomed the budget proposals, while stressing that the public sector character of the railways should be maintained.
In a statement issued here, PMK founder S. Ramadoss said Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda disappointed the state as people expected new projects and trains to be announced for Tamil Nadu.
Referring to the five new trains in Tamil Nadu announced by Gowda, Ramadoss said they would not benefit the people.
MDMK general secretary Vaiko termed the budget disappointing for Tamil Nadu, but said there were some welcome features.
He said barring a few new trains, the long term expectations of the state were not fulfilled.
DMDK leader A. Vijaykant welcomed the various passenger amenities proposed in Gowda’s maiden budget.
He said attracting private and foreign investment for projects was not wrong.