Railway Budget to be or not to be....

                                       Railway Budget to be or not to be?

 A panel headed by   Bibek Debroy, a member of Niti  Aayog has suggested   the  practice of  a separate  railway budget  be discarded.   This   remedy   is worse than the disease. .

First,   It is said to help depoliticize the Railways .Even without it,   Suresh Prabhu has strongly resisted attempts to influence Railway decisions for political reasons. He has refused to announce new lines, new trains, etc., .  He has   introduced transparency in tendering.  

Secondly, It is also said   that this would help the Govt   take commercial decisions. There are two enemies who must be defeated if Railways are to take commercial decisions.    A separate Budget  is not one of them.

1.The Railway unions entrenched in a corrupt relationship with bureaucrats , will never allow reducing the staff cost from the current 53% of the Revenue to  at least 40% when  10% to 20% is the norm and  commercial viability  threshold  in  other  Railways . A news item on 28^th June says that CBI has filed an FIR against  41 TTEs who printed fake receipt books and collecting money and there was an agitation by SRMU protesting the FIR.

2. As the proverb goes, the cat that has tasted milk will hover around all the time. The bureaucracy which   has   made Railways their own empire with absolute freedom from accountability will not allow any change in the status quo. (   Remember   the Rs.10 crore scam of   Bansal’s nephew.) They  would even   expand   their empire solely   to serve their interests   (9 zones became 17  but  efficiency only decreased:  Debroy report ).

Thirdly,,   there is nothing to show that  customer service  would improve  if it became  a part of the Government.. If the budgets are merged, Railways   would move further into the Government instead of moving further away from the Government   .

Let Zones become corporations. Let manufacturing units compete with the private players in those sectors. Let them follow the standard commercial accounting practices. Let them lure investments.  Then Railway budget will become irrelevant and fall like a withered leaf gently.  Merging now is putting the cart before the horse.

Fourthly,, this merger is said to facilitate account reforms   Several  committees, from  Sarin (1985) to Debroy (2015) have recommended accounting reforms to understand  easily   the true financial state of the organization. The   power of the Railway Bureaucracy  can be measured by the fact that till today they have stalled all efforts to reform although  there is a Chartered Accountant as a Minister. Prabhu promised  zero based budgeting in this year. Has it happened?   . What is needed is   separation of Railway employee-Members from Railway Board, and a complete overhaul of the   Board by bringing in experts.

Fifthly, this merger can be done only at the cost of transparency and accountability.   Sadananda Gowda in his Railway Budget speech of 2014 said that out of 676 projects in 30 years, only 327 were completed. After spending the original estimate Rs 1,57,883 crore,  now the railway  needed Rs 1,82,000 crore to complete the rest.  Only one out of 99 new lines sanctioned in the last ten years has been completed. This kind of shocking revelation will never be made about Railways in the General Budget.  Debroy wants   only a paragraph for Railways in the General Budget.  Even the financial details would be relegated to a corner in small print in the annexure.

Besides, IR carries 822 crores passengers in a year.( 2014-15)  ). Because its decisions affect the people,   there are  expectations and curiosity  about the budget . It is certainly an engine of economic growth.. Railway’s annual revenue is projected to be Rs. 1, 84, 820 crores.  Only, U.P., A.P. and Maharashtra have higher budgets. IR needs special attention.

  Let us see  why  the  Railway Budget  was separated from  the General Budget  in the first place  .The Acworth Committee (  1921 ) wanted Railways to be run as commercial organization on sound business principle. (  Indian Railways-M. A. Rao  pp58-60 )  Then,  it  would   meet its needs from its own income,    from  outside the general revenues of the country,     Three more   committees   endorsed   this  .  Japan separated its Railway Budget from the Central Budget in 1919. A   Legislative Assembly   committee on 20^th September 1924 passed a resolution separating Railway budget from the General Budget. The Government   accepted this   and the Convention of 1924   came into force.  It recognized the railways as being   free to look after their own affairs and to function on “sound business principle” as a commercial undertaking, besides being a public utility.

 This must continue. Merging the budgets   and making it a mere department of the Government would take us back by a century to pre-1924 days.

                               My wish list for the Railway Budget.

Being wise, Mr. Suresh Prabhu, did not announce any new train   or project or new line last year because he knew he had no money . No extra money has flowed in now although plans are afoot.  He has to be wise this year too.. Then Railways would survive.     .

Mr.Sadananda Gowda  did some plain speaking in his Railway Budget speech in 2014.   He said that out of 676 projects in  30 years, only 327 had been completed and after spending the original estimate Rs.1,57,883 crores, now Railway Bureaucracy needed Rs.1,82,000 crore to complete the rest and  only one out of 99  New lines sanctioned in the last ten years had been completed.  Our Parliament meekly accepted such gross inefficiency.   .  

 . Rs.8.56 lakh crores are needed to modernise in the next five years including Rs.1.27 lakh crores for safety (  p169 Bibek Debroy Report ) and nearly Rs.4.91 lakh crores are needed to execute  the pending projects.  ( p136. BDR) There have been 23 committees so far to reform Railways. The  self-preserving Railway Bureaucracy has ignored most of the recommendations of the 22  earlier committees. Of the Anil Kakodkar committee’s 106 recommendations on safety (2012) 70 were discussed and 36 yet to be discussed  including  the creation of Railway Safety Authority.  The list of accepted but unimplemented recommendations is long..  Accounting reforms suggested  in 1985 are yet to take off.P128 BDR)  .   Mr.Prabhu must stand firm and allot sufficient funds to implement  Debroy report  in full.   

. This Bullet train can wait for another decade as it means taking a Japanese loan for Rs.90, 000 crore besides our money Rs.10,000 crores.  

 ,  If FDI is to come, zonal Railways must be corporatized. . The PPP did not  progress since the Railway  Bureaucracy    would  ensure it failure. Look at their power!  Although 1973 Pay Commission asked them to abolish Bungalow peons, they still retain 1126   peons. A corporate Board  at best may have  40-60- personnel to assist the Board. The Railways have 1107 persons   working in the Board secretariat.  Railway Board was not worried  that operating ratio  was over 90% from 1980-2005,  .

It made 17  Zones out of  9  Zones  to have   that many GMs, DGM(g)s,  DGMs,  AGMs, .  CCMs more and  so many thousands more   including 40 more DRMS. Debroy committee records the efficiency did not increase even by one percent because of this creation of new Zones. The operating ratio was at 75.94 % in 2007-08  . The Railways must get back to this figure from the current unacceptable 91%.    

The Unions are going to strike. Goats never liked Bakhrit.. Reforms will be stoutly opposed. Mr. Prabhu must gear  up   to manage the strike. The staff must be reduced at least by10%.this year as the staff cost remains at unconscionable 51% of revenue.  Surgery is needed. .On the night of  16^th November, 1980, the entire Railway Board was sacked and M.S. Gujral was appointed Chairman and Mrs.Gandhi signed the order at 2.00 am .  Later, he sacked 900  Railwaymen on  single day. If the zones are constricted to   5 again, the savings will help. In order to raise the Rs.8 lakh crores, he must sell lock, stock and barrel Railway Quarters, hospitals,   schools and the lands surrounding them. They have outlived their purpose of creation. Non-core pet projects like nursing College, Medical College and Railway University   must be immediately dumped to save money.   .

Profit can be made either by enhancing the revenue or by reducing the cost. There is already a drop in passengers’ revenue. Before any fare hike is attempted, this must be borne in my mind. Any more increase in A/c classes will persuade the people to fly. Season tickets have still scope for increase. Fare must be fixed per km.  Prices of commodities ten years ago  and now should be compared with Railway ticket prices ten years ago and now  to convince the public. Development charges must go and rationalization of cancellation charges must be done.

  .   The cost of concessions must be borne by the respective Ministries instead of the Railways. Concession for handicapped will be borne by Welfare Ministry. This suggestion (DBR) can be implemented now. As   senior citizens occupy more berths and seats, Railways suffer erosion in income. Their concession must be limited to 20% for both genders.

Mr. Suresh Prabhu will not get encomiums but posterity will not willingly forget him.

                                                                   S..Pushpavanam 93451 01216

Secretary, Consumer Protection Council, TN. (786)

                

                                      Recurring Railway Rhetoric

The   rhetoric of the Railway Bureaucracy  (RB) would have become very  familiar to people who   follow  Railway Budgets. Since it is a mainly a  PR exercise    to create impressions and not really meant to be     executed within a time frame, it has become an interesting entertainment   Ministers may come and Ministers may go but the attitude of the  RB remains the same  forever . Hence we can expect the rhetoric this year too.

It might begin  with a paean of praise for the Prime Minister.  Then   a few sentences on what Railways have achieved with the help of ever sincere   public-service minded workers and the officials. Then something about the soul of the Railways which is claimed to be commitment to the   common man and its role in moving the economy. A few sentences on its nation integrating functions will follow.

They may even try to name this year. They may call it year of the Customer  or passenger year as they did in the nineties.  For them the passenger is not clearly the customer.

As usual, it will be declared safety is their priority .But you would never be told how many heads rolled when a train rammed into another train from behind, or when two trains caught fire or when several derailments had taken place during 2015-16  so far or in 2014-15 

  Debroy Committee  submitted  its report in June 2015. The RB  has kicked 22 earlier committee reports to their destined goal, the attics in Rail  Bhavan. Possibly, a committee will be appointed to study Debroy Committee Report and  analyse its implications. This is the usual route to the attic. Many of you must have  concluded  that this article is brimming with   prejudices  and so permit me to  quote  two passages.

This is from Shri.Sadananda Gowda’  Railway budget speech n 2014.

He  said  that out of 676 projects in  30 years, only 327  were completed. After spending the original estimate Rs.1,57,883 crores,  now RB needs Rs.1,82,000 crore to complete the rest.  Only one out of 99 Newlines sanctioned in the last ten years has been completed .

  Debroy, said in an article on Aug.4^th ,2015( ToI)   satirically ,” A new Railway Minister wants to show a healthy operating ratio? Not an issue, reduce contributions to Safety Fund  Depreciation Reserve fund  and PF. Consequences will be borne by posterity.  RB could do anything at will and on demand at  the cost of safety. “

The minister may proudly announce that operating ratio has come down.

The RB  is most inventive. If they want to hike the fare, they can think of one thousand ways of doing it without calling it fare hike.  If   any other Railways says  in the world, “if you want us to carry you from Point A to Point B in our trains, pay us this much; if you want us to  carry you safely, pay us more” it would be considered outrageous. But our Indian Railways did exactly that and got away   with their safety surcharge. Similarly, if any trader sells you   his goods for a price and collects as Develop0ment charge price +x   rupees ,  no one would pay and it would be a terrible unfair trade practice. But our Indian Railways have been collecting Development charges for years. It is quite   likely , this year they would come up with something  cleverer.   

Then we come to the desert.  I   am reminded of Tennyson’s lines,” They landed in an afternoon where it always seemed an afternoon.”(  Lotus eaters) That European afternoon was a very pleasant thing unlike ours. Similarly in Indian Railways, once they launch a pilot project, it always remained a pilot project. These are a few of my favourite   pilot projects,   safety devices like GPS guided signaling, train activated warning system, Anti-collision devices, and fool-proof signaling ,Advance warning systems,  Bio-toilets.  Dedicated Freight corridors, Dedicated passenger train corridors, Railway Safety Authority ,Rail tariff Authority and branded food in pantry cars, fire  extinguishers in every coach  will find a mention

. These are regular characters in the drama of Railway Budget.  RB will never tell you why they have not installed scoot and flash warning devices at every level crossing gate saving hundreds of crores in salaries. It is because that these appointments, manning the unmanned LCs are the play field of the politicians and union   leaders..

 Rat-eaten suit cases, unpunctual trains, unhygienic lavatories, unpushable flush knobs in the latrines, and waterless wash basins in the early mornings, unusable newspaper pouches in the chair cars, regularly recurring accidents ,, as usual will not find a mention. AS usual, the PM and ruling party will welcome the  budget, of course the opposition criticising it.

                                                            S.Pushpavanam

            consumerpc@rediffmail.com(785)

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corruption in Railways

                            Corruption in Railways

Union Minister Shri.Suresh Prabhu is very happy that he has introduced  e-tendering in Railway contracts.. When I met him on Dec ember 3^rd, he listened to my criticism and at the end  gave me a booklet on his e-tendering initiatives and  said that would   curb corruption. This article is to tell you how misled he was.

          e-tendering will make  the contracts transparent  . Overpricing to cover bribes can be detected. To that extent, yes it is welcome. But corruption in Railways has several dimensions  outside the field of tendering, which cannot be stopped unless surgical measures are resorted to.

Member –staff ( Mahesh Kumar) of the Railway Board was asked to pay Rs.10 crores (  paid advance of   Rs.90 lakhs) to get the “lucrative “ Member Electrical post.  Except Mahesh Kumar’s suspension, and CBI chargesheet, nothing happened. It is business as usual in all departments.  

In the second biggest catch Railway Traffic   official Ravi Mohan Sharma was arrested on Oct.22, 2014  while accepting Rs.5 lakh bribe  from a tour operator for getting coaches for special train on priority. When CBI reached his house for raid, his relatives flushed out in the drain Rs.10 lakhs which CBI re covered.( Oct.25^th IBN)

CBI is scanning several top officials. March13, 2014 ToI reports two  CBI enquiries on the Railway Board and  another  on  Rail Tel in giving mobile phones to employees. A multi-crore weighbridges scam  (22^nd April IE. 2015).  and. a Rs.300 crore freight scam in  Tiruchirappalli Division (  June 11^th, The Hindu,2015) are  being investigated.  While the former relates to under-reporting , the latter refers to fixing cheaper classification.   

. Central Vigilance Commission reports that in 2014 there is an 82% increase in corruption cases from 2013 and most of them were on Railways.( Aug.4^th ToI, 2015)   

            Under the dual pricing system introduced in May-July 2008, the freight rate for transporting iron ore for non-domestic consumption was more than three times the fixed rate to transport coal for domestic consumption. Without getting   prescribed documents, the consignment was classified under domestic consumption category

In a report tabled in Parliament on  Feb.12,2014 , CAG said the railways lost revenue of Rs 2,487 crore   on this account, according to its audit conducted between May 2008 and March 2012. Additional loss of Rs.1796 crores was also reported during 2011-12..

The report said about Rs 15,500 crore was to be recovered as penalty and recovery from various iron export companies.

 It said lapses had occurred at all levels, including by the booking staff at loading-unloading points and commercial and account officers at the divisional and zonal levels. The “Railway Board failed to stipulate specific checks and balances for implementing their orders”, the report said.

In January 2007, East Central Railways had purchased 219 acres of land for about Rs 140 crore   without “any clear cut decision on utilisation”, the report said.  Of this, Rs 112 crore  was raised through a loan that resulted in interest liability of Rs 8.8 crore    

The report also  said 65 per cent of overhauled locomotives reported failure within three months of periodic overhauls. Bibek Debroy famously asked the question in his report, “Why do two thirds of locomotives develop problems within 6 months   of periodic overhaul? Why do two thirds of goods trains leave late because the locomotives are not available?”  No answers. There is a corruption story behind these two.  

According to CBI spokesperson   the Railway Board had prescribed that IRCTC shall provide Rail Neer at a rate of Rs 10.50 (approx) per bottle to the private caterers and the private caterers will be paid Rs 15 (approx) per bottle for supplying the same to passengers in premium trains. But the private supplies also procured   local cheap packaged water buying them at Rs. 5.70  to Rs.7  and sold them for Rs.15. Railways lost, supplier and officials gained.

 Despite repeated requests of IRCTC, the accused public servants did not take action against the private parties." .On October 16^th, 205, CBI recovered Rs.20 crores in cash in a simultaneous raid  on 13 locations  and  the Rail Neer  scam was bust.

A road inside Tiruchirappalli junction was laid on 30-06-2012  and was  in tatters within 1 year. It is worse now.. It is a standing   testimony  to corruption by the DRMs who gave the  work order  for Rs.62  lakhs , signed the contract and satisfactory completion report.

How can e-tendering detect all these corruption ?  Mr. Prabhu must make the Railway men understand that Railways are not for Railway men and the public are  their paymasters, establish accountability at all levels, reduce the zones from 17 to 6, corporatize them,  appease unions by golden handshake, deflate the bloated bureaucracy, and above  all,   rid the Railway Board of  the Railway- employee Members.

 No Board of management in the World consists only of its employees as our Railways do.

                                                                   S.Pushpavanam consumerpc@rediffmail.com( 817)

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Misuse of Padma Awards

                                   Misuse of Padma Awards.

Pre-fixing a title to their names is peculiar to Tamilnadu and it almost defines the deep rooted desire of the people to glorify themselves.   This desire   cuts across caste lines, political affiliations and the economic divide.   The trend perhaps started with the filmdom where anyone can give a title to anyone. But National Awards are on a different footing.

National Awards were formally instituted in January  1954  to recognize the services of those who made a valuable contribution to the Nation. They were thus defined:

Bharat Ratna: For exceptional service   towards the advancement of art, literature and science  and in recognition of the public service of the highest order

Padma Vibhushan: For exceptional and distinguished service in any field including service rendered by Govt. services.

Padma Bhushan: For distinguished service of a high order in any field including the service rendered by Govt. servant.

Padma Shree: For distinguished service in any field including service rendered by Govt. servants. ( SC judgement on Dec.15^th, 1995 –Justice A. M .Ahmadi )

 The criteria are not clear. Bharat Ratna is for exceptional service and Padma Vibhushan for exceptional and distinguished service. Should it not be   the other way about ?

Even during the constitutional debate,   J.B.Kriplani’s suggestion that  the Awardees   found  committing “commercial offences” be deprived of their awards.    was not accepted.   . So we have many Padma awardees   raided by Income-Tax. These   things rob the awards their decorum.  Similarly musicians  charging in lakhs  for a concert are   creating wealth for themselves. Where is the service here? Persons who are engaged in enriching themselves    should not be awarded for that particular activity. It has to be beyond the call of duty. Rigorous scrutiny is needed while choosing   film stars,   if at  all they must be chosen. For instance, an   actress ,  a 2016 awardee  has said she does not need a man in her life. She said “Men must not be needed but wanted.”   Another actress awardee , when questioned about her“ revelations”  said she was  proud to display her assets because she had those assets .

  That the Padma Award is only an award and not a title does not dawn on many who don it and flaunt it as a title.    But in Tamilnadu, not merely  the  film stars but eminent  industrialists, top  musicians, educationists,  have no qualms about pre-fixing  it to their names as if it is a title.  Their letter-heads, visiting cards and announcements of their programmers mark it loudly..  Satyajit Roy, Abdul kalam,   Nandan Nilekani   , Anil Kakkodkar, E.Sridharn, or Narayana  Murthy  and many others   never pre-fixed their awards to their names as titles nor did they carry any other title.

The Home Ministry  replying to my RTI query clarified that “ the National Awards  do not amount to “titles “ within the meaning of Article 18 (1) of the Constitution and they should not be used as suffixes or prefixes. If this is done, the defaulter should forfeit the National Award ….”      It has cited a Supreme Court judgment delivered on Dec.15^th, 1995 by a Bench led by Justice A. M. Ahmadi CJI  

 . A press note issued by the Government of India in 1968 warned the Awardees that the awards should not be used as titles on letter heads, invitation cards, posters books etc., and warned of forfeiture if misused.  A complaint to the Home ministry with proof will result in forfeiture.

 Andhra Pradesh High Court asked producers Mohan Babu and Brahmananda to surrender their awards when a case was filed against their misuse of the awards. In the appeal, Supreme Court ( April 12, 2014 The Hindu) asked them to give an undertaking not to misuse . 

    The Supreme Court ( 1995) also recorded  that Conferment of Padma awards without any firm guidelines and fool-proof method of selection was  bound to breed nepotism, favoritism, patronage and even corruption.  Asha Parek  climbing 12 floors to meet  Union Minister Gadhkari  says it all. The Supreme Court recommended an extremely high standard and the limitation of awards to a fixed number in each category.  This Government must restore its value and dignity by making suitable changes in the criteria.    

    S.Pushpavanam, Free lance journalist, consumerpc@rediffmail.com(700)  

Title mania of the Tamils

                                  Title Mania of the Tamils

Pre-fixing a title to their names is peculiar to Tamilnadu and it almost defines the deep rooted desire of the people to glorify themselves.  There is a total lack of humility   that all the Tamil literature want Tamilians to have. This desire to pre-fix a title to their names cuts across caste lines, political affiliations and the economic divide.   The trend perhaps started with the filmdom. There is not a single  top star in Tamil screen  who does not have a title. From Nadigavel,  to   Vaigai puyal the list is endless. One of them calls himself Ulaganayagan (hero of the world) although his films are seen only in Tamilnadu and among Tamil speaking Diaspora.   The poets prone to exaggeration, call themselves Kaviyarasu, Kavi Perarasu and Kavi ko. (    trying to be one-up) .

This mania spread to several spheres including the academia. I received an invitation for a seminar on Translation from an English Department of a college in which the Head of the Department has described himself as “Ilakkiya Sudar” and the secretary of the College has been called “Kalvi  Thanthai. That there were at least four errors in the invitation is beside the point. In one of the comedy clips on TV, I saw a powerful satire on this Kalvi  thanthai since too many people are pre-fixing the title now. The owner of a college would proudly boast,” Do you know  how hard I have come up gradually, from being a beedi gatherer, pick pocket, liquor brewer, local Dada now I have become Kalvi Thanthai.”   To claim privileges is a mark of the rich and somehow they want to belong to some exclusive club.

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All this can be fun if you do not take it seriously. But when they do something unlawful, then it is to be questioned.. I refer to the Padma Awards. That the Padma Award is only an award and not a title does not   dawn on many who don it and flaunt it as a title.  I can understand the ignoramus in the filmdom who  do it.. But eminent contributors to industry, top  musicians, educationists, in Tamilnadu  have no qualms about pre-fixing  it to their names as if it is a title.  Their letter-heads, visiting cards and announcements of their programmers mark it loudly..  Satyajit Roy, Rajkapoor,    or   Nandan Nilekani   or Anil kakkodkar, E.Sridharn, or Narayana  Murthy  and many others   never pre-fixed their awards to their names as titles nor did they carry any other title.

The Ministry of Home Affairs in its reply to my RTI query clarified that “ the national Awards  do not amount to “titles “ within the meaning of Article 18 (1) of the Constitution and they should not be used as suffixes or prefixes. If this is done, the defaulter should forfeit the National Award ….”      It has cited a Supreme Court judgment delivered on Dec.15^th, 1995 by a Bench led by Justice A. M. Ahmadi CJI in Balaji Raghavan  vs Union of India.

 . A press note issued by the Government of India in 1968 warned the Awardees that the awards should not be used as titles on letter heads, invitation cards, posters books etc., and warned of forfeiture if misused.  A complaint to the Home ministry with proof will result in forfeiture.

 Andhra Pradesh High Court asked producers Mohan Babu and Brahmananda to surrender their awards when a case was filed against their misuse of the awards. Supreme Court ( April 12, 2014 The Hindu) asked them to give an undertaking not to misuse, in an appeal.  

    The Supreme Court ( 1995) also recorded  that Conferment of Padma awards without any firm guidelines and fool-proof method of selection was  bound to breed nepotism, favouritism, patronage and even corruption. It recommended an extremely high standard and the limitation of awards to a fixed number in each category. Let us hope that this Government restores its value.

                                                          S. Pushpavanam Free lance journalist

                             consumerpc@rediffmail.com(661)