Rail Budget 2014: Linking rail fare with fuel price to hit common man, says Naveen Patnaik

BHUBANESHWAR: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed his unhappiness over the railway budget which offered less than half the investment the state had sought.

Patnaik also criticised the budget for linking fares to fuel price. This, he said, would “expose the common man to vagaries of fluctuations in fuel price.” “Odisha had requested for projects worth Rs 3,160 crore and I understand that budget worth Rs 1,420 crore is being sanctioned for Odisha,” he said. The budget has set aside Rs 100 crore for a rail line from Khurda to Bolangir for which the state had promised to bear half the construction cost and provide land for free.

In letters sent recently to both the railway minister and Prime Minister, Patnaik had asked for investments that reflect Odisha’s contribution to railway revenue, largely on transporting minerals produced in the state. While gross earnings from various stations in Odisha during 2013-2014 were estimated to be in excess of Rs 14,000 crore, railway route length and density in the state is well below national average, he had pointed out.