tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post1221554322566069866..comments2024-03-29T11:45:43.197+05:30Comments on Musings of Dheeraj Sanghi: Railway Budget 2016Dheeraj Sanghihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06367519409840642182noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post-57339558897556993802016-03-02T16:46:06.264+05:302016-03-02T16:46:06.264+05:30
Congratulations! Your blog post was featured in t...<br />Congratulations! Your blog post was featured in the Buzzing Blogosphere on March 01, 2016 at Blogadda. <br /><br />Please find it here: <br />http://blog.blogadda.com/2016/03/01/buzzing-blogosphere-railway-budget-2016Team BlogAddahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10414756277892063084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post-14806435282141280172016-02-29T23:36:58.955+05:302016-02-29T23:36:58.955+05:30@Sudipta, of course, it is possible. Railways can ...@Sudipta, of course, it is possible. Railways can always do pilot projects. Then it can have tender with improved specs. Or it can have tender which will have separate weights for technical and commercial terms. You being in a government institute should know all these options.Dheeraj Sanghihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06367519409840642182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post-77326879690809015852016-02-29T11:55:38.483+05:302016-02-29T11:55:38.483+05:30Dear Dheeraj,
Well thought out, as always. There h...Dear Dheeraj,<br />Well thought out, as always. There has to be a mechanism by which the railways is motivated to test and incorporate innovations. Say if some company invents a better pantograph, how does it sell it to the railways, which will always go by the lowest quotation?<br />SudiptaAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00505066232666516995noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post-59278638513774519792016-02-26T11:45:57.629+05:302016-02-26T11:45:57.629+05:30@Vishwesha Guttal, very interesting point. Never t...@Vishwesha Guttal, very interesting point. Never thought about it. Even if go back in history, Railway companies were inter-state. By the way, the Railway Act allows states to have their own railways, and state governments can even allow private players within the states to set up railways (except that if you were to do that, Indian Railways would probably refuse to have any dealing with you). The problem is that railway is profitable only when there is significant freight, and freight is almost always long-distance traffic, and hence intra-state railways are not likely to be profitable. We have Metros as examples of intra-state railways and if they can be cash flow positive, we feel happy about them. We don't worry about depreciation, and of course, we assume that states would have to give land and provide all sorts of support (read, subsidy) to them. And this is when Metro systems are being built only in places with heavy passenger traffic.<br /><br />What I hear from my south Indian friends is that the bus companies are too strong a lobby there,and whenever there is an attempt to improve Railway infrastructure, they will lobby to scuttle the plans. Even CK Jaffer Sharief could not do much, even though he was bold enough (and some may say, brash enough) to launch the Project Unigague.Dheeraj Sanghihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06367519409840642182noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post-8680628814823840562016-02-26T09:10:02.411+05:302016-02-26T09:10:02.411+05:30Do you have any thoughts on decentralising railway...Do you have any thoughts on decentralising railways to allow state governments develop on their own, but the Centre works only on inter-state routes or on developing certain national corridors? I have felt that states like Karnataka have been nearly left out of Railway radar due to lack of political power at the centre. I had never boarded a train until I first came to IIT-K and my friends in the north couldn't believe it! I just can not imagine bus transportation of the entire country being run by a single central government ministry. May be the analogy is wrong because the fraction of current railway routes run only within a state is low, and if its low I wonder if it is because states have no power on this. Of course the issue is complex and involves many details like who builds & maintains tracks, non-passenger trains, etc. It would be great if you can write about pros and cons of decentralising Railways! thanks. anonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16125838103842099398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4273139713770751485.post-56810129430122598362016-02-26T01:40:24.247+05:302016-02-26T01:40:24.247+05:30Generating hope is easier, delivering is difficult...Generating hope is easier, delivering is difficult<br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11839435864714447248noreply@blogger.com