Railway minister Sadananda Gowda used his budget on Tuesday — the first major policy showcasing of the Modi government — to signal its intention of using private sector investments, both domestic and foreign, as the prime engine of growth and modernization. Having got rid of the difficult part by hiking rail fares and freight charges late last month, Gowda could focus his budget speech on the new government's vision for the Railways, and he did just that.The government's vision clearly has a major role for the private sector in everything from new projects and freight terminals to cleanliness and food on trains and at stations. As Gowda's speech made clear, "It is our target that bulk of our future projects will be financed through PPP (public-private partnership) route".He argued that while hikes in fares and freight charges were necessary to sustain financial viability, it would be "unrealistic" to depend solely on such an approach to raise the resources needed for modernizing the prime national transporter. That's why, the minister said, his ministry was seeking Cabinet approval for allowing FDI in the sector.Gowda was at pains to point out that successive governments in the past had announced new projects with abandon — falling prey to the "nasha (intoxication) of claps — but had been lax in implementing them to the extent that some were pending for three decades. In contrast, he said, the focus now would be on prioritizing projects. In particular, doubling and trebling of lines to decongest major routes would get the nod ahead of new lines, which have typically been unviable.In keeping with this line of shunning populism and in a radical departure from historical practice, the minister did not announce any new projects in his budget, though there were a slew of new trains (including those announced by the UPA in the interim rail budget) and extensions of existing ones. Gowda also castigated earlier governments for failing to raise passenger fares and thus creating a situation in which the loss per passenger kilometre had risen from 10 paise in 2000-01 to 23 paise in 2012-13.Describing the noughties as the "decade of golden dilemma - the dilemma of choosing between commercial viability and social viability", Gowda said while the Railways would continue to fufil social obligations, doing so beyond a point was "not possible without compromising on efficiency and safety".Railway minister DV Sadananda Gowda (left) and minister of state for railway, Manoj Singha hold up their briefcases at Parliament House before presenting the Railway Budget 2014-15 on June 8, 2014. (TOI photo by Yogesh Kumar)Despite the pro-corporate and pro-reform tone of the rail budget, stock markets reacted adversely with the sensex shedding 518 points, its biggest single-day decline in 10 months. The slump was attributed by market analysts partly to the absence of details in the budget speech. Also, while corporates and markets are looking forward to greater fiscal discipline, there's a worry that a stricter watch on government spending could lower demand and hence hit growth.The political opposition as well as the railway unions, not surprisingly, reacted sharply to the budget, with some dubbing it 'elitist' and others decrying the move to 'privatize' the railways.The new-look railways, Gowda promised, would include a bullet train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, high-speed trains on nine sectors, a greater focus on cleanliness and decent food and further improvements in the e-ticketing system. They would also see some stations being developed along the lines of the new airports through the PPP route.Corporates will not just have a role to play in developing new freight terminals, they could also adopt stations and take care of their cleanliness and maintenance. NGOs and charitable institutions too could do so. CCTVs will be used to monitor cleanliness at stations.Food courts at major stations, where regional cuisines would be available, and pre-cooked meals on board from reputed brands are among the promises on the catering front.Not only will tickets be available for booking online, the facility would also be extended to booking trains, coaches, or seats. Online booking of retiring rooms will be extended to all stations in 2014-15, the minister promised.Business travellers will also, on some select trains, be able to use workstations for a fee. For the handicapped and elderly, the service of battery-operated carts will be extended to cover all major stations. Safety of women too found a mention, with the rail mantri saying 4,000 women RPF constables would be recruited towards this end. Also, "coaches for ladies will be escorted" and additional care would be taken of women travelling alone.
On Tuesday, Indian Railway Minister  presented his first budget for Indian Railways.

The budget emphasized increased amenities for travelers, better safety, and timely completion of projects. There were no fare hikes announced as both passenger and freight fares had been increased last month. But, it was announced that fares will be revised twice a year to absorb fuel costs. Gowda criticized previous governments for announcing new projects and failing to complete them. He said projects will now be prioritized, such as decongesting major routes instead of announcing new ones. Gowda announced no major new projects, but announced 54 new trains. He also criticized the last government for driving the railways into a loss.

Gowda announced a bullet train between Mumbai and ; new semi-high speed trains in nine sectors connecting metros; and new measures towards improving cleanliness, food, and  were announced. He said  will be installed in major stations to monitor cleanliness, and major stations will have food courts serving local cuisines and precooked food from reputable catering brands will be served on-board. The railways have faced complaints of substandard food in the past.

He announced the introduction of a new rail-flaw detection system to better investigate the causes of accidents.  The budget allocated a significant sum to the construction of bridges at unmanned crossings, a major cause of rail-track deaths. He announced a new project to introduce automatic closing doors on mainline and suburban trains, and said  will be provided in larger stations and select trains.  will be available for on-board use for a fee by Business travelers. The e-ticketing system will be extended from booking tickets to booking coaches and entire trains, and also retiring rooms in stations. Electric mobility carts will be provided to elderly and handicapped passengers at all major stations.  Also,  will recruit four thousand female constables and escorted carriages will be provided for women. A significant amount was announced for improving rail connectivity in north-east India.

Gowda emphasized use of  (PPPs) to fund future projects. He also said he will ask the  to approve foreign direct investment (FDI) in Indian Railways. Some stations are to be improved using PPPs.  Manish R. Sharma, executive director of capital projects and infrastructure at , pointed out the budget didn't contain any information on how the government intends to attract private investors. Deven Choksey, managing director at K. R. Choksey securities, said the government now seemed to be more inclined towards PPPs than before. India's stock index  dropped and closed 2% below opening. Investors were observed selling shares in energy, infrastructure, and real estate sectors.