Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors to be operational in 2022

Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors will become operational in 2022 informed Railways' Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday, March 16, 2021, in the Lok Sabha.

The Minister said, when the country celebrates 75 years of Independence in 2022, both Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors will become operational.

Participating in a discussion on demands for grants of the Ministry of Railways for 2021-22, Mr. Goyal said, Rs 2,15,000 crore have been allocated for Railways in the 2021-22 Budget. He reiterated that the Railways is the property of the country and it will not be privatized.

Stating that Indian Railways has become the growth engine of the country, Mr. Goyal said that if private players are investing in Railways, it should be welcomed in the country's interest. He said, the private sector will bring with them efficiency and will also give momentum to the wheels of the economy.

In a second tweet, the Ministry of Railways said, "Indian Railways will never be privatised. But just like in the case of government roads on which all kinds of vehicles ply, private investment in Railways that enhances service standards for the passengers should be welcomed: MR Shri @PiyushGoyal Ji #HumSabKiRail."

Highlighting the works done by the Ministry to provide convenient travel to passengers, he said, Railways is planning to start 44 Vande Bharat trains across the country. The Minister said that Railways is focusing on the safety of the passengers and asserted that no passenger was killed due to rail accidents in the last two years.

Mr. Goyal said, had the Prime Minister not have announced a timely lockdown when the outbreak of Covid-19 was reported, the virus would have spread to six lakh villages in the country. Anticipating a situation of overwhelming hospitals with Covid patients, an appropriate decision was taken by his ministry to convert 560 coaches into isolation wards the Minister said.