RAILWAY SAMACHAR

Railway Board and the fiscal mess

SIR, ~ The article, “Member hand behind financial tailspin” (The Statesman, 24 February) cites irrefutable instances of the Railways’ financial maladies.

It is unlikely that the minister will provide for remedial measures in the Railway budget. Mamata Banerjee has done little or nothing since she took over as Railway minister in May 2009. She cut her teeth into politics 20 years ago with the singular mission of removing the CPI-M from power in West Bengal. When she realised that her original party, the Congress, was not willing to accept the challenge, she floated the Trinamul Congress. To my mind, the post of West Bengal’s chief minister is not her target. Her actual ambition is to get rid of the CPI-M.

yours, etc.,

N K Dasgupta,

Kolkata

24 february.

Revamp the board

SIR, ~ The report, ‘Member hand behind financial tailspin’ (24 February) is really alarming. Corruption and irregularities in the functioning of the Railway Board have made the country’s largest transport network extremely vulnerable. The Railway Board direly needs to be reformed. It is the centre of vested interests. The members function according to their whims. It is quite apparent that the board is protected by the political masters; otherwise such acts of brazen corruption, as exposed in your report, would not have taken place.

Railway finances are in a state of disarray. One major reason is extensive corruption. The other is that fares have not been raised for years together. Because of decrepit finances, the provisions on safety are seldom implemented. Mamata Banerjee has inaugurated several new projects and tracks; but they are yet to get off the ground. A marginal increase in fares is unlikely in an election year; yet it can yield a fair amount of revenue.

A special drive needs to be undertaken to weed out corruption in the Railway Board. Convincing reforms should be introduced to revamp the functioning of the board which arguably can even be abolished.

yours, etc.,

Saroj Upadhyay,

Kolkata, 24 february.

Undaunted Maoists