Modi sees role for private sector in modernisation of railway stations

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday suggested greater involvement of the private sector in the development and modernisation of railway stations across the country.

He said most railway stations in the country are old-fashioned and leave much to be desired in terms of amenities. This, he said, opens the way for involvement of private sector in their modernisation while also making them economically viable.

"We want the railway stations to have better facilities than airports. This is our dream and it is not a difficult thing to do and this is economically viable too," Modi said addressing a gathering during inauguration of rail link to Katra, the base of Vaishno Devi shrine.

He said he has already discussed the issue in detail with the Railways and "you will see a change in near future. We will work it out soon."

Observing that the PPP model can be used for the modernisation of railway stations, the prime minister said, "private parties would also be ready to invest because this is a good project economically and will benefit everyone. This would be a win-win situation project and we want to move ahead in this direction in the coming days."

Modi said the railway stations in metros and important cities would be a priority for the government with regard to development of railway stations, adding that the railway ministry has already been given a detailed outline of the project.

Modi's observations are likely to reflect in Rail Budget which is to be presented in Parliament on 8 July.

The railways have been incurring a monthly loss of about Rs900 crore in passenger segment even as it lacked funds for modernisation.

The prime minister, meanwhile, stressed that Katra station in J&K will be environment-friendly as it will be run on solar power. "We want environment-friendly transportation system in the state. By protecting environment we can give more facilties to passengers. So it can be a station which can be fully run by solar power," Modi said.

He said the Railway Board chairman has assured him that action would be initiated in this direction at the earliest.