The Hindu : Task force for keeping rly. stations clean

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Aug 19, 2002

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National

Task force for keeping rly. stations clean

By K. Balchand

HAJIPUR AUG.18. The Railway Minister, Nitish Kumar, addressing a press conference at the East Central Railway office here, which is scheduled to become operational on October 1, said a task force would be set up under a member of the Railway Board to keep railway stations and trains clean. The traditional methods had failed to deliver and there was a need to adopt to the latest methods. A blueprint was being prepared to cover at least 50 stations in the country.

Mr. Kumar, however, said that no surcharge would be levied and the funds would be made available from the reserves of the railways. The Minister, who was here to lay the foundation stone for the first floor of the new zonal office, said the railways was committed to increasing the facilities for passengers and the creation of the new zone was part of that exercise.

The Minister outlined the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee's announcement of the National Railway Development Plan entailing an expenditure of Rs.15,000 crores over a period of five years. On the price war, he said the cut in air fares had not adversely affected the railways, and hence, it had been decided not to slash the fares of the Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains. He, however, announced that the fare structure of these trains would be rationalised in the next Railway Budget. He sought to clarify that he was neither hinting at a decrease nor an increase in their fares, but only a mere restructuring in the ticket prices.

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