Railway to invest Rs.63,000 crore in 2013-14

New Delhi  : Indian Railways plan to invest Rs.63,363 crore ($11.5 billion) in the new financial year beginning April 1, mainly on expansion of tracks and improving passenger safety, Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said Tuesday.

“The thrust of the plan is on doubling of tracks, safety and passenger and staff welfare for which I have increased the outlay from about Rs.11,410 crore in 2012-13 to Rs.13,220 crore, an increase of 16 percent,” Bansal said while presenting the annual budget of his ministry in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament.

Bansal said the railways would get Rs.26,000 crore budgetary support in the next financial year to finance its plan expenditure.

Other sources of financing include Rs.14,260 crore from railway’s internal resources and Rs.2,000 crore from railway’s share in road safety fund.

There is also a plan to raise Rs.15,103 crore from the market and mobilise Rs.6,000 crore through public-private-partnership (PPP) route to fund its expansion plans in 2013-14.

Bansal said 500 km of new railway lines would be built and 450 km of narrow and medium gauge lines would be converted into broad gauge in the 2013-14 fiscal.

The government has also set a target to double 750 km of single railway lines.