Railway Budget 2015: 5 expectations from Suresh Prabhu

New Delhi, Feb 26: Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu will present his first budget in the Parliament on Thursday, Feb 26. This will be the first full year railway budget by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government.

Huge expectations have been built ahead of Prabhu's Railway Budget. According to sources, the railway minister is likely to cut down bureaucracy and red tape in railways to attract investments. Meanwhile, experts claimed that Modi's 'Make in India' campaign too will leave its impact on the budget. [Railway Budget 2015: Will Suresh Prabhu's budget be in line with Modi's dreams?]

Here are the list of 5 expectations from Suresh Prabhu's Railway Budget 2015:

Bullet trains: Modi government's dream project may get a boost as Prabhu is expected to announce the ambitious high-speed train project between Mumbai-Ahmedabad and survey programmes for the proposed diamond quadrilateral route.

WiFi and technology: Prabhu is expected to make the railways tech friendly. Extensive use of IT systems in everything and installation of WiFi might be announced.

CCTV cameras: One proposal to install CCTV cameras at all railway coaches and platforms might be given to provide full security to travellers.

Impact of Swachh Bharat -- cleanliness and bio-toilets: Modi's Swacch Bharat campaign will impact Railway Budget. According to sources, 59,000 coaches are likely to be converted into vacuum toilets, a technology that's available in air planes.

Proposal to cover 100 more trains under 'On Board Housekeeping Services' also might be given. Announcement on use of solar energy, launching of waste-to-energy project, water recycling plants could be made.

No hike in passenger fare: According to reports, passenger fares are unlikely to be hiked, but freight fares may be rationalized. Sources also informed that Prabhu is unlikely to announce any new trains. [Railway Budget 2015: Fares, fuel & funds in focus]

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