Rail Budget 2016: Kerala's needs not addressed, says Congress

KOCHI: Being an election year Kerala's expectations were high as the Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu presented the railway budget 2016-17 in the parliament on Thursday.

But apart from the announcements like a suburban rail service for Thiruvananthapuram, a token allocation for Sabari rail project and upgradation of Chengannur station to address the needs of Sabarimala pilgrims, the budget does not offer much for the state.

Congress leader Anto Antony described the budget as the “most disappointing” budget as far as Kerala is concerned. He said that the state had submitted a list of demands to the railway minister well in advance.

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said that Kerala was one of the first states to sign an MoU with railway. Sabari rail project, suburban railway for Thiruvananthapuram and Nilambur – Nanjangud railway, new trains etc were some of the demands of the state. The expectations from the budget were high, he said adding that he hoped the budgetary allocations were also high.

Though the railway’s minister’s decision not to hike the passenger fares and freight rates has been widely welcomed, the budget has left some of the key projects unaddressed, it is felt. The long pending the coach factory in Palakkad, wagon factory at Shertallai, more rail connectivity etc were largely left unaddressed by the budget. It has been pointed out that the Malabar region as a whole has been neglected in the budget.