Indian Railways set to modernize with ₹10-12 lakh crore investment over five years

Indian Railways is ready with a 100-day plan post-elections 2024. It includes a focus on various passenger-friendly measures, like a 24-hour ticket refund scheme, a comprehensive super App for various railways facilities, three economic corridors and sleeper Vande Bharat trains, government officials told ANI.

The new ticket refund scheme will ensure refunds within 24 hours and will replace the current three days to one-week refund process.

Railways will launch a comprehensive ‘super App’, it will have all railways-related facilities from booking and cancelling tickets to live tracking of trains and for bookings for foods in trains.

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The 100-day agenda of the new government for Railways also includes, an insurance scheme for all rail passengers called “PM Rail Yatri Bima Yojana”.

The modernization plan of railways includes an investment of ₹10 to 12 lakh crore over the next five years for transforming Railways with modern world-class facilities.

Vande Bharat trains will be introduced across India in three categories, Vande metro on routes of less than 100 kms, Vande chair car on 100 to 550 kms routes and Vande Sleeper for routes of over 550 kms.

Currently, Vande Bharat trains are running on nearly 50 routes across India.

The Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train will be operationalized by April 2029 and the feasibility study will be done for three more bullet train projects in North, South and East India.

• Also read: At 1,591 mt, Railways achieves highest-ever freight loading in FY24

The Railways have planned for three economic corridors spanning over 40,000 kms, with an investment of over ₹10 lakh crore.

Over 1,300 railways stations will be modernized with private participation. The transformed stations will have world-class amenities like shopping malls and airport-like waiting lounges.

Metro networks will be expanded in more urban cities. Currently, metro is working or work initiated in 20 urban cities.

More high-frequency trains like the RAPID rail are planned, and the one between Delhi and Meerut is partially launched.

In a meeting chaired by the cabinet secretary held on Friday, where different ministries and departments of the government presented their 100-day agenda after the formation of the new government.