New Delhi: Rajya Sabha saw a vigilance of concerns raised on Monday Protests about the status of Indian Railways during the passage of Railway (Amendment) Bill 2024.
They were from Lack of accountability of the security system close to the security system, lack of accountability in one part of Stamped, demand for the resignation of the minister, shocking vacancies in the department, lack of transparency in view of the elimination of a separate railway budget, and the power of electricity with the Railway Board.
The bill demanded the cancellation of the Indian Railway Board Act, 1905 and inclusion of its provisions in the Railways Act, 1989, which controls various aspects of the functioning and administration of the Indian Railways. The Bill passed the Bill last December by the Lok Sabha.
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On Monday, the debate on the bill, which was later passed through a voice vote in the upper house, saw a warm exchange between Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav and opposition MPs, who called it a “cosmetic change” at a time when the Railways is in the need of a broader overHall. For example, Congress MP Vivek Tanha said that Vaishnav has an “innovative mindset”, and is a “tech-lovar”, he has a “bureaucratic mentality”.
Tanha said that he does not have “political open -minded” to run the railways, which is not only a yoga of railway tracks and engines, but a means to unite the country.
Come back to the tan, Vaishnav said, “Yes, I am a bureaucrat and a technocrat. But my commitment to the country is nothing short of a politician. If there is a problem with my commitment, raise a finger, otherwise you have no right to indicate the finger. ,
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Provisions (Amendment) of Railways Act 2026
The government’s intention behind bringing the bill was to remove two separate, but with technical touch created by overlapping laws controlling Indian Railways. In the pre -independence era, the construction of railway network in the country began as a branch of the Public Works Department (PWD).
But as the network expanded, a separate Act- the Indian Railway Act, 1890- was enacted to ensure proper functioning of the Railways. But the railway organization remained under PWD. It was also changed in 1905, and a separate Indian Railway Board Act was implemented, in which the Railway Board got its powers from the 1890 law.
Decades later, the law of 1890 was canceled, and the Railway Act of 1989 was implemented.
Meanwhile, the Indian Railway Board Act, 1905, was present with the Chairman and members of the Railway Board appointed under this law.
2024 Amendment Indian Railway Board Act, 1905 tries to remove this repetition of law by integrating the Railway Act of 1989 in the Railway Act of 1989.
Even opposition MPs argued that the government was trying to control the Railway Board through this amendment, Vaishnav assured the House that the amendment only tries to simplify the existing laws. However, the opposition MPs called the proposed amendment a cosmetic change, and an opportunity for a lapse to review the overall functioning of the Railways, many of them argued, in a state of chaos.
Demand for the resignation of the minister
Many opposition MPs expressed concern about insufficient security provisions in the railway. Between 2014-2023, 678 railway accidents occurred, in which 781 people lost their lives, while more than 1,500 were injured, Trinmool Congress MP Sushmita Dev said.
“Does it not call for accountability?” He asked. While the provision of sovereign immunity under the Railway Act of 1989 gives exemption from the prosecution to the Railway Minister, the Prime Minister should have demanded the resignation of Vaishnav, especially after February Stampede at New Delhi railway stationHe said.
Tanha also argued that in front of such accidents, high-profile leaders like Lal Bahadur Shastri, Nitish Kumar and Mamta Banerjee offered to resign. This, Tanha said, only enhances the validity of democracy. Resignation in such situations or not Discretion (Vivek) of every person, he said without naming Vaishnav.
AAP MP Sandeep Pathak, who said that his party supports the bill, also echoed the same spirit – he said to stop individual authorities responsible for accidents, and take political responsibility for him.
Over-sensitization in railway
Tanha further argued that the bill, in fact, is the source of the problem that is dropping the railway because it “shows” “GovernmentRailway Board.
The Railway Board was conceived as an autonomous body with independent powers from the Ministry and the government, Tanha argued. But the proposed bill tries to make it a “minister-driven”, he said.
Many MPs also pointed to the “over-system of Indian Railways”.
For the smallest financial decisions, General Managers and DRM have to wait for a node from the Railway Board, AAP reader said, pointing to the need for decentralization.
Stunning vacancies, high fare
RJD MP Manoj Kumar Jha said that while Railways used to be the largest employer of the country, it currently has more than 3.12 lakh vacancies.
Calling this figure “frightening”, Dev further said that there are 1.52 lakh vacant posts in the security department itself.
Pathak said that the management of the railway needed an overhaul, given that its operational cost is very high, the investment in capacity building is low, 70 percent of its revenue is spent on salary, and accidents occur at a high level. “This bill is an opportunity for an omission,” he commented.
Many MPs including Tanha, Jha and Dev also talked about the ambitious Vande Bharat project running at the cost of other affordable passenger trains. Jha said, “Eighty percent of this country still travels in other vehicles.” But the government is only interested in spending Vande India, which is ineffective for the common man.
On the other hand, Tanha said that while the fare for Vande Bharat is about 200 rupees more than Shatabadi, its speed is higher than only one kilometer per hour than the centenary. He said that fare is increasing in the absence of any real improvement in facilities. “Is the government competing with the private sector (in terms of prices)?” Tanha said.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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