Mr. Jay Shankar, Chief Economist, Religare Capital Markets Ltd.

The Railway Budget is likely to be a mixed one - trying to strike a balance between the concerns of 'aam adami' and generating more revenue. Of late, the Indian Railways has become more professional with improved profitability. Some amount of rationalization in fares and freight - long overdue - can be expected, with the twin concerns mentioned above as the guiding principle. The Railways has been facing huge and fierce competition from the roadways operators. It needs to make it's fares and freight rate slabs more competitive and promote smaller traders and freight customers as well, who generally prefer the roadways and can not reap economies of scale. Besides, we need operational efficiency and economic rationale to dominate over politics in deciding on expansion plans and budgetary outlays. Also long overdue is the issue of rail-safety and technological upgradation. The temptation of introducing newer trains at the cost of safety, security and technological upgradation leading to better operational efficiency should be avoided. It is high time that active reforms are carried out in one of the largest railway networks of the world. Unutilized land should be leased out for commercial purposes, as also more of non-core activities should be outsourced to private operators.