Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that Indian Railways provides affordable transportation service to more than 720 crore passengers and its fare is among the lowest in the world. In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today, the Minister said that the total amount of subsidy given in financial year 2023-24 on passenger travel is estimated at 60 thousand 466 crore rupees which amounts to 45 percent subsidy on the cost of passenger travel. Mr Vaishnaw informed that further, concessions beyond this subsidy amount are continuing for various categories of Divyangjans, patients and students.
The Minister informed that fares have been rationalized from July this year after a gap of more than 5 years and the increase in fares is very low. Mr Vaishnaw also said that Indian Railways is focused on providing affordable, good quality services to all sections of society. He added that Railways have introduced Vande Bharat services which are semi-high speed trains and are aimed to provide better travel experience and improved safety to the passengers. These services are equipped with enhanced safety features and modern passenger amenities. At present, 144 Vande Bharat train services are operational on the Broad Gauge electrified network of Indian Railways.
Mr Vaishnaw further informed that Amrit Bharat Station Scheme has been launched for development of stations on a continuous basis with a long-term approach. So far, 1,337 stations have been identified for development under this scheme and under the first phase, works of 105 stations have been completed.
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