Railways is one ministry which always suffers because of coalations. Just anyone with no experience in handling such an important ministry is given the responsibility. Lot of improvements are pending for so many years now. On top of that, newly coming ministers will give subsidies like charity, because of which the department suffers. We need cleaner stations, timely service, lesser queues and waiting lists. But everyone ignores this.

I am agree with this

Now let us think, how the entire railway development could be limited to West Bengal and woo the Bengali mind set to get more deep root in the Bengali politics. This is what every body did. So, why should Mamanta also should abstain from the habit of partisan governings.... more votes... more power.

May 27, 2009
Recently I travelled in train-metre gauge-waiting and getting OLD to be Broad-gauge; Arnej station,to go to Ahmedabad in Gujarat; IT was so crowded, nobody thought of increasing its frequences and earn ticket revenue? KULDIS were employed by Lalu Prasadji and he was teaching in IITs and IIMs Schools but then as Mamataji said-
only Bihar was more developed and Howrah was not connected in the project? THEN, WHERE IS THE SHARED RESPONSIBILITY OF ALL MINISTERS IS EXPLAINED; when such lower class planning is taking place?
MAY BE, THIS TIME CONGRESS IS IN CHARGE AND SUCH UNBALANCED APPROACHED WILL NOT HAPPEN!!!???
KEEP MERA BHARAT MAHAN- OUR BHARAT MAHAN.RISE ABOVE SMALL INTERESTS; after all- you never know,
when GOD calls you back- so foolw HIM, at least.

Karkaria : Kame Cho, I think it is too early for you to write this Blog, I can write on both sides on coin.Indian Railways need :1 On the leadership level one has to enhance the spirit of the workers. Instead of facing the market, privatization and retrenchment were encouraged.
2 On the management level passenger fare and freight were steeply enhanced without understanding the problems of the market.
3 Value of own properties was not understood, neither attention was paid on their maintenance nor the assets fully exploited.
4 In the railway, generally more fixed cost means whether you run a train of four compartments or 24, there is not much difference in the cost. Whether you run the carriage or not, depreciation is bound to occur. That is why we have been paying attention to reduce the per-unit cost and to maximize utilization of properties and
5 Made investments in schemes yielding higher profits in lesser time,
6 Introduced trains such as the Garib Rath,
7 Curtailed the compartments from empty-running trains and added those to overcrowded trains. As a result the Operating Ratio (OR) now stands at 78 percent.In order to maintain the face-lift of the railways, fine admixture of short-term and long-term policies is the unique feature of our investment policy. On the one hand we are investing in such a manner so as to earn more profit in lesser time. For example, we converted siding and terminal point into full rake, provided the 24-hour loading and unloading facility. On the other hand under long-term policy, we are also making investments in projects like Dedicated Freight Corridor, new wheel, wagon and coach factory so that better opportunities remain available to us for facing the market in future.Railway is a very big empire. By earning a profit of Rs 20,000 crore, we are in a strong financial position today. We are paying dividend on time. Due to better working results the Railway is no more a burden like the old one.

Railway Ministry is one of the major ministries which directly deals with common people and their common needs that they expect with the concerned minister to satisfy. Many plans had already made to make a common man to travel in Indian Railway with convience but very less of them have actually implimented. Now its the people select and elect only those who do work for them and this only and biggest power makes a powerful politicians helpless. The condition of Indian railway is might good but the condition of the Railway Stations, their toilets, train timings is highly disappointing. We hope these problems will soonly look after by the respected minister.

• On the leadership level one has to enhance the spirit of the workers. Instead of facing the market, privatization and retrenchment were encouraged.On the management level passenger fare and freight were steeply enhanced without understanding the problems of the market.
• Value of own properties was not understood, neither attention was paid on their maintenance nor the assets fully exploited.
In the railway, generally more fixed cost means whether you run a train of four compartments or 24, there is not much difference in the cost. Whether you run the carriage or not, depreciation is bound to occur. That is why we have been paying attention to reduce the per-unit cost and to maximize utilization of properties and
• Made investments in schemes yielding higher profits in lesser time,
• Introduced trains such as the Garib Rath,
• Curtailed the compartments from empty-running trains and added those to overcrowded trains. As a result the Operating Ratio (OR) now stands at 78 percent.
In order to maintain the face-lift of the railways, fine admixture of short-term and long-term policies is the unique feature of our investment policy. On the one hand we are investing in such a manner so as to earn more profit in lesser time. For example, we converted siding and terminal point into full rake, provided the 24-hour loading and unloading facility. On the other hand under long-term policy, we are also making investments in projects like Dedicated Freight Corridor, new wheel, wagon and coach factory so that better opportunities remain available to us for facing the market in future.Railway is a very big empire. By earning a profit of Rs 20,000 crore, we are in a strong financial position today. We are paying dividend on time. Due to better working results the Railway is no more a burden like the old one. Today we are not a burden but self-dependent. Since we are a part of the government hence in some form or other we are adding strength to the nation financially.

1) N. Korea a threat to India ?

UPA should have thought twice before signing the nuke deal. India may not have the flexibility and freedom to combat such a threat.
Amarsinghs and Joshies can have a show off on another stage.
2) UPA - II
The second UPA ministry is noway a surprise.In a mandate overwhelmed and hijacked by the electronic media, no one is required from
the heaven's or the land to oversee and correct their natural mistakes and weaknesses. Indian politics is like this even from the Nehru's time.
The clever West is always ready to take away thier happy deals. Manmohan did not do anything worse. They can always recover from their mistakes.
Arun Shouries and Jethmalani's need not worry about the electronics media, which is always impartial and always only good sense prevails.
Anyway things are not going to be retrogressive in anyway.

3) Austria / Autralia racial ?

Australia's is not a place which is very much inhabitable. If one is racial no one needs to worry.
Macgrath need not worry about sending bouncers, but but he has to worry about the health of his kins.
Vienna episode may be an eye-opener to the UPA and its West-ward policy.

4 ) Pakistan under Asif Sardari , a Sudan or a Somalia !!!
There had been unrest and agitations right from the day the Bhutto's returned from exile.The root cause
of these events are not anyway in Pakistan(Believe it or not). It lies somewhere in the southern part of the subcontinents ( Kerala ) , where the Aryadans and
IUML are trying to control the Urdu politics in India, which is invariably linked with the Pakistan. Moppila's in Malappuram with the help of some
church mongers are aiming for something , which they can not hold in their beak.

It is pitty that railway which is one of the very vital ministry was handled by person of calibre like Lallu who befooled every body with false figures , promoting wrong people . Take an eample of the last minute huredly passed panel of GM where an epectionally high calibered officer from IRSe viz topper was side tracked? I hope Didi brings in justice and bold steps for which she is well known

Again the ministry has gone to people like Mamata who are ignorant of the needs of India as a whole. There was Lalu whose stint in a comedy of sorts. Now comes Mamata, who is not going to sit in Delhi but instead in West Bengal. How will she know the needs of the nation if she is going to concentrate in West Bengal. Since the last many years, Deccan region and South India have been ignored by the railway ministers. A very important route between Pune and Arakkonam has still not been doubled even after 60 years of independence leave alone electrified. In the same way the route between Gooty and Bangalore has not been electrified. The region is not given priority. So much for a ministry which should take the matter of development of railways in the whole of India with priority.

A vast organisation like the railways needs accountability at all levels. It must be answerable to the user. The problem is that always people highly unfit for the post are choosen to head it. Runnig the vast railway networks are hihgly sophisticted and technical in nature which require sensible mature and technically qualified people for the successful operation of the system. I only hope that things dont turn from bad to worse due to the whims and fancies of an erratic minister.

It wuld have been better had railways been given to someone who has travelled widely in the country, has industry background. nion leader and stgreet fighter types of George Fernades and sectarian people Ram Vilas Paswan did more harm to the railways than any good. Mamta appears to be not the right choice. She is ideally positioned her self for a place in histry by demolishing the Left from West Bengl and bring some much needed change there. Instead she is throwing it to the winds. Didi must csrry out a SWAT analysis. Some one needs to help her.

The Railways are seen as a scapegoat as the Indian public is seen to use this mode of transportation anyways. This is the only means for Indians to travel and politicians take this department as "granted" This is not correct. Public must not accept services in this way.

Railway has been always suffered since independence.No doubt, Lalu made it profitable and tried to provide good sevices like Tatkal seva,Garibrath,no increment in fare.But still, there is lack of basic amenities like pure drinking water,quality railway food,clean railway stations etc.Instead of improving these, our new minister is planning to provide subsidies on human grounds.It is good, but first of all, she should develop strong infrastructure for railway and then she should talk of subsidies.

A PROFESSIONAL C.E.O. SHOULD HEAD THE RAILWAY MINISTRY. A HONEST & DEDICATED PERSON LIKE SREEDHARAN OF KONKAN RAILWAYS.
THERE WILL BE TOTAL TRANSFORMATION QUALITATIVELY IN A SHORT TIME.

nice article

I'm inclined to agree with you afa station's cleanliness is concerned. To add more to the cleanliness aspect, the train's facility is not as great as people have always wanted it to be. We have always attuned ourselves hoping that things will change. But the unanswered question is who is gonna bell the cat? Don u think gone are the days when people used to stand in long Q’s? Or at least it has improved by leaps and bounds. Timely service is something which cannot be achieved overnight. It’s a slow process which ll be corrected over a period of time. And in this case, lots of time is required for the simple reason that timely service has to be achieved every single time. I can recollect when there was an occasion when the train was delayed by at least 6 hours. But, it has improved radically I must confess. Still a very long way to go before we can think of comparing our railway services with best in the business.

Indian Railways have two identities which make it a unique public sector undertaking.Firstly,it is a political football & secondly, it is a barometer of the Indian economy.In the first identity, right from the moment that a new minister takes over, quirky orders get issued, often diametrically opposite to the well conceived decisions of earlier leadership. After the first flush of such acts, the ever resilient bureaucracy of this organization quietly takes over, and business is as usual, which means that the minister continues to pamper his or her region, and the bureaucracy happily cooperates. The quid pro quo is simple: We shall do whatever you want us to do in your preferred region, and you allow us a free hand in all other matters. Bickering between the dozen-and-odd services within the Railways goes on merrily, and most ministers invariably learn how to play one against the other & retain primacy.
It is the second feature which is not adequately appreciated. That is why, when the economy is buoyant and Railways get a lot of traffic, the minister receives ecstatic praise for his “Harvard certified management and leadership qualities”, although the Railways may actually be reaping the belated benefit of earlier policies. In all fairness, the minister deserves commendation for not upsetting those policies, but he gets a lot more. And another success could follow if the minister’s relations with the P.M. and the finance minister are good. Railways could get a handsome contribution from the General Budget for its development. Of course, with this, the Harvard crowd howls even more lustily.
But Mamta is different. She is very sincere,even obstinate, when it comes to the benefits for masses. And she is unfortunate because the country’s economy has taken a downturn. Her pro-people measures will need to be balanced with hard financial realities. And she may not have to do this tight rope walk for long: the Writers Building may beckon her pretty soon.

Mamta has plaied a game with the public. She is trying to cheat with 20 Rs. Pass. You can get the 20 Rs Railway pass, but for that you have to reduce your income to Rs. 500 Per month.. isn't it funny....

Where was the need for Ms.Mamta Banerjee to announce cheaper season tickets, etc.,? What was she aiming by these annuncements? By clever utilisation of the recources to the maximum possible limit, under Lalu and PM, Railways had built a good base. Now this lady is out to squander all the benfits and neglect the upliftment of the safety, security of the men, machine of the RAILWAYS. She should concentrate on spending on these issues and not on giving subsidy to the public by way of cheaper season tickets, etc., It was utter disappointment to hear her talk of doling out cheaper season tickets, etc., without addressing the pressing issues of rail safety and improvement of the facilities at the trains and at stations. She should also come out of her bengal specific thinking after becoming the union minister for Indian Railways.

I believe the Railways can afford such ministers because of a strong Railway Board; the minister just happens to be the face. While a minister may be able to introduce some element of reforms if he/ she is imaginative and inspired enough, the damage that an inept minister can do would be severely restricted because of the way the Railways are administratively structured. After all, the government, and the Railways, have to run!

Congrajulations to mamtha didi Railway min. Realy does she handles railway. Ofcourse Lallu can handle wy not Mamtha. Hope her journey safe and efficient and reach every destination safe!

During the lalu's reign, the railway has been proved to be the most prolific department as far as the materialistic gains are concerned. Therefore, the foremost challenge posed before mamta banerjee is to maintain the value of railway. Apart from it, the most challenging task of her is to ensure the security of passengers in the railways and railway stations. Certainly, a long way has to go. The challenges are many more, but most watchable feature is 'how efficiently these challenges are taken and tackled by the new railway minister.'

Most of the benefits from he railway ministry are always tilted towards the state from where the Railway minister comes from. For the last 5 years, Bihar has benefitted immensly because Lalu is from there. All other regions suffered because of Lalu. Now that Mamata has taken over, her first priority was given to W Bengal. But, I feel on the whole Mamata will do a much better job than Lalu. Her record is much better than Lalu. In the budgets to be presented by her we should see all regions benefiting. Lalu had crossed his limits, most of the new trains introduced in the last 5 years started or terminated from Bihar. He went on to the extent of conducting a feasability for bullet trains in Bihar. Everyone knows that Mumbai is the financial capital of country and cities like Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Surat etc are not far behind. The introduction of bullet trains will definately be a good thing and hence the cities mentioned above should be connected with bullet trains. No city in Bihar can match Mumbai or any other metropolis. Of course, the fares of bullet trains will also be high and as seen the people who travel ticketless in trains actually worship Lalu. Lalu says that he has not increased fares in the last five years, but he has definately introduced 'hidden' charges over this period like the 'Enhanced Reservation' charge, where suppose I go and book a ticket in Mumbai from Mumbai to say Ratnagiri return. The down journey will cost me say Rs. 200, but the return journey will cost me Rs 210, an increase of Rs 10 because, I'm booking the ticket from outside Ratnagiri. All in all, Lalu has fooled the people in such aspects and I feel even Nitish Kumar was a much better Railway minister.
All in all, I feel Mamata will concentrate on W Bengal in the beginning but she will be a much better Railway Minister vis a vis Lalu Prasad Yadav

Will Minister Mamata didi do something for Karnataka state in terms of new lines and trains ? Hubli-Ankola , Gadwal-raichur,kadur Chikmagalur-sakleshpur, Bangalore-hassan, Mysore-Bangalore gauge conversion are sufferring. Can Mamata put some elixir into these projects ?

Well i think Didi has an onerous task in her hand now. After bringing railway into a profit Laluji has set a very high standard for his successors. Howsoever jokey Laulji may be but he did a formidable job. few things which Didi should do now are:-
1. make the superfast train really a superfast train which Laluji did just for the sake of name and charging the passengers 20 rs. extra.
2. Look for cleanliness in the boggies and stations.
3. Strictness on train timing which is really a tough task.
4. Expedite the work on many Railways project started by her predecessors. I think everytime new minister takes the charge and abolishes the work started by her predecessors.
5. Every state should be benefited from Railway. No favorism for particular state.
6. Try to bring zero queuing system at the stations during tikcet purchasing and reservation.
In mumbai it was started for local train but still it needs lots of improvements.
7. Minimizing the hazards and accidents.
8. Increase the bandwidth of Rail lines. it should be doubled.
9. Quality of rail boggies and regular monitoring on these things like whether fan and lights are working or not.
10. Tight security in naxlites area tarins like Ranchi and nearby area of Jharkhand, ChhatisGadh, etc.
I think i have given a long list and still many things are left. So, didi here is something for you to look into. Wish you a very safe and happy journey.

Indian railways are one of the biggest employment giving organization in the world.Its earnings constitute major part in Indian revenues n yet suffering from bad organization.Mr Laloo Prasad has done lot of unneeded efforts that don't come to any useful solution.He has set many trains for sufferfast catagoru but we all know despite of changing their fair nothing has changed.they use to stop at each station as before.Train coaches and toilets are too dirty to use them.
Platforms...what to say about them.the condition is worst in small cities.no drinking water ,no sitting place.Yeah fans are their but only few of them dare to run rest are resting.railway canteens are not up to their hygiene level and costly too.
I don't know what ordered has given to coolies but from last 1 yr I hardly could find a coolie in platforms.
Delay of trains is obvious issue but mind it u never find on monitory boards or by announcements.
At very rare case u get right info.
As being a lady I want to point one more thing please take some action by u people and railway authority please take some action to stop men to grab seats in women coaches.
Thanks

Mamta Banerjee one decision I like it, that decision is 20 Rs. Railway Pass for Poor People. I thing mamta banrjee more decision take it for poor people go to the railway travels. Former Railway Ministry Lalu Yadav some take it good decision for poor people.
Lalu in terms of native shrewdness, but the earthiest of them all was Lal Bahadur Shastri. In 1956, he resigned as rail mantri, taking moral responsibility for the accident in Ariyalur which left 144 dead. Shastri had the bad habit of doing such things I thing mamta Banrejee very well in the post of Railway Minister. So best luck to Mamta Banerjee

I do not think it was Mr. Shastri who introduced the fans in the railway compartments. It was Rafi Ahmed Kidwai. Also it was the III class which was abolished and the luxurious first class suites were replaced by the first class coupes and cabins much later after Shastri's tenure. And the sleeper coaches came in much after that.

All said and done. Lalu should have been retained as the Railway Ministry. At least it was one arm of the government that did a turn around under him and started maiking profit.

i thinking every1 need to read this person views.
Ramesh C Manghirmalani-London says:
May 27, 2009 at 08:46 PM IST
his views sound good as compared to other views
as per my views i don't like mamta banerjee in any of the ministry because the work done by her at SINGUR. i think she is the one of the best hurden for the development of the country.
every1 know what she does for nano project. and today we are seeing that person at Railway ministry. i think my vote get WASTED

I am really dejected on Mamta being selected as Railway Minister. We should know that Railway is nowhere on the radar of Mamta, her eyes are on Bengal chief ministership which she has made very clear from the very first day by announcing to relaunch Singur agitation and also by operating from Calcutta.

Railways and Surface transport are the most important ministries among all as far as common people are concerned.These two can make a very big impact on the way we live.Any government who brings palpable improvements in these two sectors is bound to come back to power.

BJP in their innings were smart enough to start raod projects but fools as they were they squandered the opportunity by appointing useless surface transport ministers in the beginning like Nitish Kumar and then Rajnath sigh whose only ambition is to become chief ministers of their states and roads are their last priority. Only Major Khanduri could do something in the left out term. If BJP would have made Mr. Nitin Gadkari (the architect of Pune expresway) as their surface transport minister then I an sure that they would have won the next elections.

In first term of UPA, Lalu has completely failed on the project side of the railways. Freight corridor is one example, no new tracks etc. Nothing done to speed up the trains. In fact all the trains have become slower as more and more number of trains put on the same tracks also causing more accidents.

In this term at least UPA should have done better b y appointing a competent and dedicated person but they are going on BJP lines by making the same mistakes and appointing Mamta as railay minister

Although Laluji sought to fame by transforming Indian Railways as a profit making organisation and by not increasing the fare, improving safety and passenger comfort seemed to be never a priority for him. Although, during his tenure, accidents happened at regular intervals, trains routinely reached their destinations late. His Kulhad project died a silent death. Cockroaches and rodents encroached into all coaches of all trains, no matter whether AC or NON-AC, making life miserable for the passengers.

I hope, in stead of going for cheap publicity stunts, Mamata didi will do some real good for the travelling Indians.

railway ministry should help poor as desired by new minister

There is no corruption charge against Mamata Banerjee .She is bold under her charge Railway Board can implement the programmes without any corruption.

Mamata's record as a railway minister was fair. Let us see what she does before spraying sarcasm all over the place. Her honesty and integrity is comparable only to Manmohan Singh.
On a recent visit to India, I found 1 to 2 hour delays in long distance trains as routine. I would like to get back one aspect of emergency (1975-77) when every train ran on time.
Having said that, the railways is much more customer friendly than most government departaments in India.
I do not think that the cost will be great compared to our size of economy today , to introduce high speed trains (200mph) between metro cities. Even freight can be transported at 200mph thus increasing productivity of the nation.

mamta is fraud , duffer etc..!!@@&$%^^%$^$....how she became minister....and the people who support her are also foolish.....

I would like to differ from Rame$h w.r.t cleanliness aspect. I would like to bring to his kind attention that it is we public who not only get attuned to the unclean environment but also dirty the same. How many of us citizens follow the rules of a public transport vehicle. We throw littern wherver we want to, keep the toliets unclean for a simple fact that it is a govt vehicle. Blaming the govt alone for unclean trains is as good as blaming the cat for the spilt milk.

Mamata Banerjeee has indeed bedded down on her berth but in a train that will remain parked most of the time in Ballygunje Station in South Kolkata till 2011 when she hopes to transfer it to the Writers Building, alight there and head straight for the Chief Minister's cabin which has been her marked destination since 1996.
To get to this destination she has taken as political bedfellows first the NDA in 1996, then the Congress in 2001, switching back to NDA in 2006 till her successful alliance with the Congress in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. But her coveted prize remains the Chief Ministership of West Bengal.

Mamata's forte is demagogy and effrontery - almost Hitlerite in its brazenness - behold the ease with which she switches sides. Note also that within hours of being sworn in as the Union Railway Minister she flies down to Kolkata to be 'by ther side of the cyclone affected'even as railway properties were burning in Punjab causing untold hardships to the people she was supposed to look after and forgeting that she had several of her own Party stalwarts in West Bengal whose duty was exactly what she had chosen for herself. Then she thumbs her nose at the Prime Minister and declares that she and the other 5 or 6 Trinamool Union ministers will spend 5 days in the week in Bengal and 2 days at their place of work in Delhi. We have to wait and see what gumption the Prime Minister and the Head of the UPA show to discipline their Trinamool allies.

A very nice typical Bachi article - laden with cliches and yet so naive.
The early days in office for madam Mamata are not as easy as the victory in Singur. Cyclone Aila destroying major rail tracks and rail services disturbed by violence in Punjab.
Alec-not-so-smart says: "Godhra or Samjhouta or Jalandhar - Why are Railways the first to face 'Garib-wrath'"

I would like to differ from Rame$h w.r.t cleanliness aspect. I would like to bring to his kind attention that it is we public who not only get attuned to the unclean environment but also dirty the same. How many of us citizens follow the rules of a public transport vehicle. We throw littern wherver we want to, keep the toliets unclean for a simple fact that it is a govt vehicle. Blaming the govt alone for unclean trains is as good as blaming the cat for the spilt milk.

To Alec Smart: No baba suit, No boxer-shorts, the Emperor is Naked

Every one first should know that Indian Railways is run by Railway Board. Any Railway Minister does not know even a single station code. The most corrupt in not the minister whether it is Mamta or Lalu. Go to Rail Bhaven and see the bureaucrat who works there. We need good bureaucrat to run Railway Board.Railway Board is most corrupt Board in india as per Vigilance report. If Mamta want to change some thing first she has to clean her department first and then she can think of others. Railway staff need Training in this new era. There are lot of organization under Railway Minister which work separately . Need to clean them and make a regulator board to check all this organization of railway department. Railway officers at the highest decision level should be honest and hard worker then only Indian Railway will move ahead, other wise it is the same story like canceling old trains and starting new train and making public a fool. There are just 856 pair of express train in Indian railways and out of that 412 only runs Daily 196 runs weekly and 87 run bi-weekly ( this include Rajdhani, Garib Rath, Shatabadi, Jan-shatabadi, superfast and Mail & express trains) For running 3112 passenger trains,1712 express trains and 1962 sub urban local trains all over India Railway spend more then 1 lakh 50000 crore . Just imagine the average expenditure per train per day . We need first a good and real accounts from Indian Railways which is not inspected by any regulator. After LIC (Life Insurence corporation of India) Indian Railway has the most fixed assets in India. Has any one regulatory body cheked the Indian Railway Accounts in last 60 Years then the true picture will come in front of the public. Mamta need a Professional CEO to run the most corrupt department of India.

It is not possible for regional political leaders to think beyond their state.Ministership is an opportunity to increase vote bank. So, I don't think that Mamta Banerjee will do any different. Till the time we have only two or three national parties contenting in the election ( which can happen only by change in constitution ),this regional politicians will play their cards.

Why Indian economy and growth suffers. Lalu had made some plans and initiated some actions. Now another Minister takes charge and initiates quite diffrenet plans dumping the old plans. This can bring back the railways by 2 yrs the least. Policy decisions once taken and cleared by the parliament and PM should not reviwed or dropped altogether based on the fancy of the incumbant, that too a person of mamta's crankiness. She will ruin the railways unless PM can put her on the right track. The 1L Crore question is will she hear him. She did not hear a great person like Vajpayee. Pity railways and its employees. She awnts to give free passes. Funny

I think Mamta can hardly do justice to the Railways given her obsession with this Ministry.Passenger amenities and development of Railways in other states may take a back seat under her ministerialship.Manmohan Singh should think of appointing two Cabinet Ministers for Railways, one for politiking (like Mamata)and another for good governing.

Only those familier with West Bengal politics know that the Bihar bias of the two Bihari Railway Ministers Ramvilas Paswan or Laloo Prasad and the by now obvious Bengal bias of the Bengali Railway Minister Mamata Manerjee is vastly different in nature. Laloo and Ramvilas used their Ministerial powers to further the interest of their State but Mamata will be using her Ministerial powers to achieve her burning ambition to rule West Bengal. Everything she has done in the few days after she took her oath points toward that. We should do well to keep watching her future behaviour in that light.

When the ordinary citizen feels that all the Rly Ministers have considered this as their personal fiefdom is it wrong ?. It is time this ministry is handled professionally without narrow parochial interest.Lallu might have made railways profitable?. It is time somebody start looking at this and find out How and and what cost to helpless passengers.It is time they look at the quality, quantity and the cost of the food served.
All said and done it is the most favoured means of transport for the millions. The government has lot of responsibility to make it economical, comfortable and safe.When we buy a ticket it is for a seated travel. In many of the trains the passengers are packed like sardines in a can and will consider if one finds a place to sit

@Ramesh C Manghirmalani-London
man, are you real? london, zurich, paris, israel, damascus. i name it and you have it. you seem to be present at all these locations on the same day. do you "teleport" yourself like the characters of harry potter books? coming to your "comment" above, you seem to have copy-pasted it some railway ministry document — probably one of the budget speeches of lalu prasad yadav. the "our investment policy" you are talking about is obviously lalu's investment policy. there are many more instances where your "comment" gives you away. i wonder how toi is allowing such comments.

@Ramesh C Manghirmalani
I copied portions of your comment above, pasted it in a Google searchbox and wow! it took me to http://www.indiaonestop.com/face2face/railway_minister_india.htm, which has a Lalu interview which you have posted here as your own comment. come up with something original and don't try to be an experts on everything!

send email of railway minister, govt of india

Bachi. You forgot some of the other good persons and jokers who occupied the august chair. Sardar Swarn Singh and Madhu Dandvate did lot of good work. CK Jaffer Sharif . . less said the better. K Hanumathayya . . he sacked the Chairman of Railway Board. The reason remains a mystrey.