Use of 'kulhar' not compulsory on Railways

New Delhi, Mar 17 (UNI) Use of 'kulhar' (earthen mug), a pet project of Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, has not been made compulsory on the Railways, but khadi and handloom are now mandatory items, the Rajya Sabha was informed today.

In a written reply, Minister of State for Railways Naranbhai J.

Rathwa said use of khadi and handloom had been made compulsory since June 2004.

The minister informed that the order for khadi and handloom had been enforced on all Zonal Railways. ''No relaxation has been given to any Zonal railways with regard to khadi and handloom,'' he said.

Replying to another query, Mr Rathwa denied that the government was planning to provide luggage trolleys at major railway stations.

However, for the convenience of passengers, the government had initiated several steps, including display of porterage charges at prominent locations at the stations and regular announcements in this regard through the public address system, he said.

The minister also denied that the Railway Ministry had a proposal to set up ATMs in trains.

UNI SKS AT DS1419