Railway Minister Announces Record ₹23,778 Crore Budget Allocation For Maharashtra
Railway Minister Announces Record ₹23,778 Crore Budget Allocation For Maharashtra
Pune: Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of Railways, announced a record budget allocation of ₹23,778 crores for Maharashtra for the fiscal year 2025-26 during a media briefing via video conferencing. This allocation marks a significant increase, nearly 20 times higher than the average ₹1,171 crores allocated annually between 2009 and 2014.
Shri Dharam Veer Meena, General Manager of Central Railway, along with Divisional Railway Managers from Mumbai (Central and Western Railways), Bhusaval, Nagpur, Pune, Solapur, Nanded (South Central Railway), and Nagpur (South East Central Railway), were present at their respective headquarters. Media representatives from CSMT, Bhusaval, Nagpur, Pune, Solapur, Nanded, and Mumbai Central participated via video conferencing.
Highlighting Maharashtra’s leadership in railway development, Vaishnaw noted the tri-partite agreement between Railways, the State Government, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Under this agreement, the RBI will fund the State Government’s portion of joint projects, ensuring faster execution.
Under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, redevelopment work is advancing at 132 stations across Maharashtra. The state currently has projects worth ₹1,70,000 crores in progress, with ₹17,107 crores allocated for 301 km of railway infrastructure in Mumbai. Key projects include:
- CSMT–Kurla 5th & 6th line
- Panvel–Karjat double line suburban corridor
- Airoli–Kalwa elevated corridor
- Kalyan–Asangaon 4th line
- Kalyan–Kasara 3rd line
- Kalyan–Badlapur 3rd & 4th lines
- Nilje–Kopar double chord line
Capacity enhancements at CSMT, Parel, LTT, Kalyan, and Panvel Terminus are also planned.
A new Super App integrating various railway applications has been developed, with its beta version available on Google Play Store. Additionally, 50 Namo Bharat trains, 100 Amrit Bharat trains, and 200 Vande Bharat trains are scheduled for production this fiscal year.
To improve safety, ₹1,16,000 crores have been allocated. Vaishnaw also reported that 340 km of high-speed rail tracks have been completed, with significant progress on the BKC station, other stations, and the undersea tunnel. The Kavach 4.0 safety system is being rapidly implemented across Indian Railways, and all broad-gauge tracks of Central Railway will be equipped with it.
Present at CSMT during the briefing were Avanish Kumar Pandey, Chief Administrative Officer (Construction), Shri Arvind Malkhede, Principal Chief Commercial Manager, Central Railway, and Shri Hiresh Mina, Divisional Railway Manager, Mumbai Division.
