GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO: 761

ANSWERED ON:27.11.2014

RESTRUCTURING OF RAILWAYS

B. S. YEDDYURAPPA

(a) whether the Railways have set up a Committee on restructuring the Railways and Railway Board;

(b) if so, the details and the objectives thereof along with the time by which the committee is likely to submit its report;

(c) whether the Railways propose any role for private stakeholders in policy making and to decentralise and corporatise the functioning of the Railways;

(d) whether the Railway Unions have expressed their concerns over such move and if so, the reaction of the Railways thereto; and

(e) the other steps taken/being taken in this regard by the Railways? Will the Minister of RAILWAYSbe pleased to state:-

 MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

(SHRI MANOJ SINHA)

 (a) to (e): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House. STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 761 BY SHRI SHRIRANG APPA BARNE, SHRI ANANTKUMAR HEGDE, SHRI DHANANJAY MAHADIK, DR. HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GAVIT, SHRI DHARMENDRA YADAV, SHRI ADHALRAO PATIL SHIVAJIRAO, SHRI MOHITE PATIL VIJAYSINH SHANKARRAO, SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE, SHRI SATAV RAJEEV, SHRI DINESH TRIVEDI, SHRI ANANDRAO ADSUL, SHRI VENKATESH BABU T.G. AND SHRI RAM CHARITRA NISHAD TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 27.11.2014 REGARDING RESTRUCTURING OF RAILWAYS.

(a) to (e): Yes, Madam. Ministry of Railways have constituted a committee on 22.09.2014 with a tenure of one year for “Mobilization of resources for major Railway projects and Re-structuring of Railways, Ministry & Railway Board” under the chairmanship of Dr. Bibek Debroy. The terms of reference of the committee are:

1. Re-organising and re-structuring the Board and subsequently the department so that policy making and operations are separated, the department does not work in silos, policy making focuses on long term and medium term planning issues and operations focuses on day to day functioning of the organisation.

2. Promote exchange of officers between the Railways and other departments.

3. Estimate financial needs of the Railways and ensure appropriate frameworks and policies are in place to raise resources, both internally and from outside the Government, to enable Railways to meet the demands of the future.

4. Examine and suggest modalities for implementing the existing Cabinet decisions on setting up a Rail Tariff Authority and give recommendations. The committee has been interacting with a cross section of Railwaymen including Railway Unions and other stakeholders and suitable action on the recommendations can be considered on submission of the report of the committee