New Delhi: Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha with a provision to integrate the Indian Railway Board Act of 1905 with the Railways Act of 1989, saying its passage will increase the efficiency of the Railways. Vaishnav introduced the 'Railway Amendment Bill, 2024' in the House for discussion and passing. He said that initially the Railways was a part of the Public Works Department (PWD) and in 1905, it was separated from the PWD and a new Railway Board was formed.
Vaishnav said that the new Railway Act was brought into law in 1989, but the Railway Board Act of 1905 was not integrated into it, which should have been done at the same time. He said, “This bill has been brought only to integrate the Indian Railway Board Act 1905 into the Railway Act 1989.” Passing of this bill will increase the capacity and development of Railways. Vaishnav said that Railways has developed a lot in the last 10 years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Vaishnav said that one thousand general coaches will be added to the trains by the end of this month for poor passengers and overall there is a program to add 10 thousand new coaches. He said that under the Modi government, the budget of Railways has increased, electrification of Railways has increased and its network is also expanding rapidly. Vaishnav said that the Modi government has also paid attention to safety in the railways and the result is that while during the UPA government there were an average of 153 rail accidents in a year, last year there were 40 rail accidents and this year so far 29. Railway accidents have been registered. He said that attention is being given to further reduce railway accidents.
Image Credit: India-Tv.