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itswingedcollectoranchorfan · 7 years ago

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Debate I On Bullet Trains, Letâ€™s Drop Jholawallah Options

Debate I On Bullet Trains, Let’s Drop Jholawallah Options

Bullet trains will ease long-distance travel and might be accepted the way Delhi Metro has eased into our life.(Photo: iStock/ Altered by The Quint)

Vivian FernandesUpdated: 22.09.17

(As India and Japan embark on an ambitious bullet train project worth Rs 1 lakh crore, The Quint debates whether the initiative would be economically viable. This is the View. You may like to read the Counterview by S Pushpavanam here.)

While inaugurating Bombardier’s metro rail coach factory at Savli in Vadodara in November 2008, Narendra Modi as chief minister of Gujarat took a jibe at the Congress Party. Those who talk of vote bank politics talk of bomb, he said, hinting at the Congress Party’s affinity to a particular community. But for him it was development and Bombardier, a reference to the Canadian manufacturer of trains and airplanes.

Nine years later, the Congress is questioning the prime minister’s decision to invest in a bullet train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. It faults his priorities and love for giant projects. The investment of over Rs 1 lakh cr could have been better spent in improving the speed and safety of the railway network, its spokespersons say, though they know that the Japanese loan which will finance 85 percent of the project is not replaceable; the money cannot be diverted.

Also Read: 10 Things Modi, Abe Said During Launch of India’s 1st Bullet Train

Another set of critics find the interests of the better-off sections privileged against those of the poor. The Delhi metro was also derided as a “suit-boot” piece of showmanship, and the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT or separate bus lanes) was proposed as an alternative that could do as much for less.

Well, Delhi has had to scrap the BRT while the Delhi metro is being patronised by the poor, who love to travel in temperature-regulated comfort, which is quite a change from their usual push-n-shove experience.

Activists like Claude Alvares did their best to stop the Konkan Railway line from Mumbai to Mangaluru on the western coast, saying it will destroy Goa’s wetlands and paddy fields. It has done nothing of the kind. Instead passengers from Mangaluru can now reach Delhi via the eastern coast in 33 hours instead of 56 hours.

The Delhi metro was also derided as a “suit-boot” piece of showmanship but was accepted later.

(Photo: iStock)

At the Savli event referred above, Metro Man E Sreedharan told me that India should have invested in high-speed railways (HSRs), instead of dedicated freight corridors, which only shift goods trains to a separate, fast lane. Moving people at speeds of over 300 km per hour requires technology and skills of a different magnitude, in civil engineering, signalling and telecommunications, locomotion and, above all, passenger safety.

The foundation stone laying ceremony for the bullet train on 14 September is a historic development. It is as momentous as India’s first train run in 1853, when three locomotives ─ Sultan, Sindh and Sahib ─ hauled 400 guests in 14 carriages between Bori Bunder in Mumbai and Thane on its outskirts.

The bullet train could do to India’s railways what Maruti has done to its car and auto ancillary industry.

A worker walks at a Maruti Suzuki stockyard on the outskirts of the western Indian city of Ahmedabad.

(Photo: Reuters)

HSRs are no doubt expensive. Many, or perhaps most, are not financially profitable.

But the Mumbai-Ahmedabad line is unlikely to be loss-making. It should be able to draw about 15 million passengers a year, or about 50,000 people on each of 300 working days, willing to pay about Rs 2,500, the same as the air fare, writes Neelkanth Mishra, India Equity Strategist for Credit Suisse, an investment bank.

Also Read: Is India “Running” Slow? Bullet Trains in India vs the World

New infrastructure creates demand. For instance, I would never travel to Kharibaoli in old Delhi to buy groceries at wholesale prices, but metro connectivity has enabled me to do so.

HSRs should not be evaluated only on profitability. They have wider benefits for the economy. The bullet train might help decongest Mumbai.

People might prefer to stay, say in Surat, which will be an hour away, rather than paying a ransom for a flat in the city. Since HSRs flatter land values in cities where their stations are located, their operators should also get a share of the value they create.

HSRs have environmental benefits as well.

A 2011 European Commission white paper on transport said HSRs are 14 times less carbon intensive than cars and 15 times less polluting than air planes.

A high-speed train will release 11 grams of carbon dioxide while moving a passenger between Valence and Marseille in southeast France, it said, against 151 grams by car and 164 grams by air.

HSRs can compete with airline over distances of 500 km to 700 km. Unlike airlines, the development of new planned townships between end points is possible because there can be stops, say, every 100 km. The extra cost of carrying an extra passenger on them is also negligible, which is not the case with planes.

In the 2010 budget, the railways had proposed to conduct studies to explore the profitability of the following six routes: (a) Delhi-Chandigarh-Amritsar (450 km); (b) Pune-Mumbai-Ahmedabad (650 km); (c) Hyderbad-Dornakal-Vijayawada-Chennai (664 km) (d) Chennai-Bangalore-Coimbatore-Ernakulam (649 km); (e) Howrah-Haldia (135 km) and (f) Delhi-Agra-Luknow-Varanasi-Patna (991 km).

Passengers travel on an overcrowded train on the outskirts of New Delhi on February 26. Photo used for representational purpose.

(Photo: Reuters/Ahmad Masood)

For the Delhi-Amritsar corridor, Systra of France gave a report in 2015. Pre-feasiblity studies are now being conducted. For the Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru stretch the Chinese are conducting feasibility studies. They have also done a planning study for the Delhi-Nagpur part of the Delhi-Chennai corridor.

The Japanese had said that an HSR between Delhi and Mumbai would be very expensive. Their 2012 study had estimated that the cost of converting the existing route to semi-high speed of 200 kmph and travel time of 12 hours to be about $7 billion while a 10-hour line would cost a little over $16 billion. It had recommended a line that could cover the distance in 12 hours.

Under former Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu a plan had been drawn to convert the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah lines for speeds of 160 kmph to 200 kmph. This would be made possible by the shift in much of the goods traffic to the dedicated freight corridors which are expected to be operational from 2019.

To enable, semi-high speed travel, the railways are proposing to construct stone masonry walls on either side of the track so that there is no trespassing by humans or animals. Crossings will be through underpasses and overbridges but if there are not enough of them, normal life in towns along the route will be disrupted.

In a study done about five years ago, the Ircon International had said that the Delhi-Patna high-speed track via Agra, Lucknow and Varanasi would cost Rs 4.73 lakh crore. It said the service would be profitable even in the worst-case demand scenario.

It expected 15 eight-car trains to carry 57,000 passengers daily at a maximum speed of 300 km an hour when operations commenced in 2020 going up to 44 sixteen-car trains by 2045. The fares would be pretty steep: Rs 7,000 for second class and Rs 9,100 (that is, 30 percent more) for first class. The spot airfare between Delhi and Patna now is about Rs 4,500 but tickets booked a month in advance cost less. Its projections seem to be rich.

China has 20,000 km of HSR lines and plans to add another 10,000 km by 2020. In the early years of this decade, students and migrant workers returning home for the Chinese New Year in January would prefer buses because high-speed train fares were very high. But with incomes rising they have become affordable.

India should go in for a mix of high and semi-high speed trains. Some of the routes may not make money, but there may be economic benefits. Despite higher than anticipated traffic, Delhi’s metro train service does not even cover the cost of operations. The central government is subsidising it; it bears the exchange risk.

The value of yen has risen from 29 paise in 1993-94 to 40 paise in 2002-03. In 2012-13, it touched a high of a little less than 66 paise. The yen is now trading at nearly 58 paise to the rupee. Any appreciation of the yen will raise the cost of loan repayment . But life in Delhi will be impossible without the Delhi Metro.

Without it, the city’s roads would be gridlocked and its air even more un-breathable. Someday even bullet trains might become as basic to life in Indian cities.

(Vivian Fernandes is the editor at www.smartindianagriculture.in. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)

(#TalkingStalking: Have you ever been stalked? Share your experience with The Quint and inspire others to shatter the silence surrounding stalking. Send your stories to [email protected] or WhatsApp @ +919999008335.)

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newsindiahub-blog · 8 years ago

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New Post has been published on http://newsindiahub.com/modi-only-make-declarations-of-false-promises-and-no-work-of-public-welfare-is-done/

Modi only make declarations of false promises and no work of public welfare is done: Vaghela

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The Leader of the opposition in Gujarat Assembly Shankersinh Vaghela Talking to mediapersons in Gujarat Vidhansabha said, PM Modi has completed 1000 days as NDA Govt. today and he was made advertisement at the cost of Govt. for his self propagation. Like what he did in Gujarat as CM for 13 years, he only make declarations of false promises and no work of public welfare is done.

Where was the public welfare in advertisement made by CM Modi in 13 years of Gujarat reign.

• He promised oil from taps in Mehsana but today people do not get enough water from taps. • He is part of big corruption of GSPC. He declared 2 trillion cubic meter gas from K. G. Besin worth Rs. 2.20 lakh crores, but till today no gas is found. GSPC is under huge debt burden of Rs. 20,000 crore taken from Public banks. To hide this scam of GSPC it is now sold to ONGC, so ONGC will bear the loss of GSPC. • The farmers were promised by him Maruti car but today farmers of Gujarat are under debt. • He promised potato chips from potato produce to Deesa/Banaskantha farmers and shown dream that this chips will be sold abroad to make farmers very rich. But today these farmers have to throw away potato produce on the roads as they do not get proper prices. • He promised Narmada canal to be completed in 2010 but 44,000 k.m. sub canal not yet constructed by BJP Govt. of Gujarat. • Even after spending Rs. 1,000 crore on Ganga Safai Abhiyan, nothing is achieved and Ganga became more dirty and polluted. • Start up India and Stand up India is flopped. Instead of new industries growing, old and established industries are being closed down. Entire national become stand up in lines of ATM/Banks for getting their own hard earned money. • Make in India is a distant dream and manufacturing index is going downwards. • Rating Agencies of world have reduced India’s financial rating during this period. • Swachhata Abhiyan could not achieve any result. People do not know how much dirt is removed but from the mind of PM feeling of revenge and hatred have spread among Indian public. • Modi promised better MSPs for Groundnut, Cotton, Wheat, Rice, Sugarcane etc. but he utterly failed to address the problems of farmers on MSPs and farmers are totally unhappy. • Due to Demonetization, this PM could not find any black money but many people did corruption for exchanging notes. RBI and Ministry of Finance utterly failed during Demonetization and RBI’s credibility has been eroded greatly. • BHIM App is developed to please voters of UP and Punjab, but Rs. 1.50 is charged if you download it. During this reign, atrocities on Dalits have increased tremendously. • PM declared Rs. 6000 for pregnant women but this was an existing scheme of UPA Govt. nothing new is declared. • He waived interest for 60 days on agriculture cash credit. But fact is that farmers did not get any loans in this time, so what is the meaning of waiver of interest ?

PM requested for 50 days during Demonetization in his GOA address he said hf he failed the public can punish him personally on the streets. He promised big dreams in this 50 days time. Now on completion of 50 days, he is busy in lecturing to people and people are still suffering. 8th November, 2016, black money address by PM is over on 31st December, 2016 pink address. “No deadline, only Headline.” But in the name of “Achhe Din” prices increased. PM must resign because of the difficulties faced by the people of India and back stabbing by him.

110 people died in demonetization, chaos and irregularities prevailed at every place and people suffered a lot because of demonetization. So many small and marginal industries and businesses are closing down. Lot of people has lost jobs. Due to cash shortages, factories are locked, but PM in service sector has reduced. Small people in unorganized sectors are passing through difficult times due to unemployment, growth rate is going down.

40 % business is reduced for small businesses. Industries like ceramics, textiles, diamonds, brass parts, engineering, etc, have slowed down and many units are closed due to losses suffered by them in demonetization. How much black money found from this act of demonetization ? PM must reply o the Nation as to what are the gains and what are the losses to the people of India.

1. How much Black Money detected after 8th November, 2016? 2. How much loss to the Nation due to demonetization? How many jobs are lost due to it? 3. How many lives are lost ? What compensation was given to the families who lost their family members ? 4. Whether any planning or any discussion with experts was made by PM for demonetization ? Before taking such a harsh decision on public why Economists and RBI were not consulted ? 5. Will the Government declare names of customers/parties who credited Rs. 25.00 lakhs and above in their accounts before 8th November, 2016. 6. Financial irregularities have taken place in exchange of currency notes by RBI and co-operative banks of Gujarat on a very big scale. In the scam of exchanging currency notes, mostly people connected to BJP are found to be involved and no actions are taken by the Government. Demands of Congress party on behalf of people of India 1. Remove all restrictions on cash withdrawals from Banks and ATMs. Banks must pay 18% interest till the restrictions are continued. All charges on digital transaction must be waived. 2. Under the Food Security Act, entire food items must be given to ration card holders at half the prices by Govt. As a one time measure, Govt. must give 20% bonus on MSPs for all farm produce to farmers. 3. Due to demonetization, women have suffered many problems, so Rs. 25,000/- must be credited to a women’s account in all families below poverty line. 4. Daily wages for MANREGA laborers must be doubled for one year. Those who lost their jobs after 8th November, 2016, due to demonetization effect, must be registered through a camp and they must be paid minimum wages till March, 2017 as compensation to these workers. 5. 50% rebate should be given to small businessmen and retailers in income tax, sales tax and service tax. Respective State Govt.s must be compensated this loss by Central Govt. In 1000 days of governance, Modi Govt. has increased petrol and diesel prices by 19 times, gas prices increased on 6 times and excise duty by 9 times. Govt. has collected hefty income of Rs. 99,984 crores in 2014-15 from excise duty on petrol/diesel prices.

Presently Govt. is charging duty of Rs. 21.48 on petrol and Rs. 17.33 on diesel, which is highest. In Gujarat, due to 15% tax on PNG. Govt. is benefited by Rs. 5,302.95 crores and due to VAT and Cess on petrol and diesel, it earned income of Rs. 15,974 crore.

NDA was crying foul during the UPA Govt., but now increasing tax and duties on public even though crude prices are lower in international market. This is betrayal of public by Modi Govt. on promise of “Achhe Din”.

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