Shortly after the Railway Ministry moved from the hands of Lalu Prasad Yadav to Mamata Banerjee,
orientations were reset. It was disclosed that a Rs30,000 crore project for the setting up of locomotive manufacturing units that had been proposed by the previous ministry – would be shifted from Bihar to West Bengal. With a string of Bihari politicians serving as railway ministers (Ram Vilas Paswan, Nitish Kumar, Lalu Prasad Yadav) in the recent past, it is no surprise that Bihar was emerging as a veritable hub for the Indian Railways. After these tenures, Bihar also received a record number of new trains.
Now Mamata is promising a slew of new trains and lines for West Bengal. She has announced that she would improve rail connectivity to Digha (a popular sea resort in West Bengal) and two new trains have already been inaugurated this month. To be fair, Banerjee has also announced measures that will benefit all passengers – such as a special monthly pass scheme for students and vendors and improved security and cleanliness.
Do you think there's anything wrong with the Union Railway Minister pursuing strong agendas to benefit their own state? Or do you think provisions should be put in place to ensure that no one state receives disproportional preference over other states? |