RAIL BUDGET 2022-23: FUND TAP OPENED WITH FULL FLOW – Execution will be the key
Railway Board should ensure cadre management so that crucial vacancies in Zonal Railways do not remain unfilled for more than a week!
Lalit Chandra Trivedi on LinkedIn
So Railway budget as a subset of General Budget has been presented to parliament by FM Nirmala Sitaraman on 1st Feb 2022.
Total Revenue earnings have been projected to be 2,40,000 INR crores (32 billion USD). As regards expenditure, while revenue expenditure (OPEX) is projected to be INR 2,32,000 crores (3around 31 billion USD) the capital expenditure is estimated at INR 2,45,000 crores (approx 33 billion USD).
To meet Capex requirement a budgetary support of INR 1,37,300 crores has been provided and balanced around 1 lakh crores will be met by extra budgetary resources (EBR) a euphemism for market borrowing.
Targets:
To create transport capacity – Adequate allocation for new lines, doubling, and gauge conversion projects has been made, totalling a whopping 67,000 crores.
Electrification – the target is to achieve 100% electrification by December 2023. Allocation of Rs 7695 crores has been made.
Rolling stock – An allocation of Rs 38886 crores has been made.
Challenges – Efficient utilisation of funds allocated is a major challenge.
Frequently it is seen that field units are unable to utilise allocated funds on account of procedural issues. These need to be sorted out by strengthening financial and administrative powers of field units to avoid back references to higher administrative layers.
For last 3 years induction of officers has not taken place on account of the delay in finalising administrative structure envisaged in IRMS scheme.
This is affecting safety as well as execution of projects.
Issues connected with land acquisition – particularly if the land is classified as forest land or reserved for special interest groups like Tribal notified etc. Relaxation similar to what were extended to Border Road Organisation for expeditious execution of projects need to be extended to Railways also.
Staff expenditure (60%), energy (15%) and debt servicing (15%) are the major heads of expenditure and need to be tamed.
EPC method of tender awarding has still not caught on in Railways. This requires some amendments in coral provision so that Contractor is free to adopt drawing and design for bridges etc with the approval of recognised third party of repute (IIT etc).
Unskilled jobs need to be outsourced so that the expenditure on staff is brought down.
E-office has caught on in Railways and should now result in paperless working leading to higher level of efficiency and transparency.
With the availability of adequate funds power to transfer of funds between different works need to be delegated to GM, in fact any item which is related to either running of Railways or execution of projects, the buck should stop on the table of GM of zonal Railways / production units.
Railway Board should ensure cadre management so that crucial vacancies in Zonal Railways do not remain unfilled for more than a week.
Shri #LCTrivedi was the GM/ECR.
#Railbudget #executionmanagement
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lalit-chandra-trivedi-11b25113