Ease of Access For Physically Challenged / Senior Citizens Provision of amenities at stations, including those for differently-abled/senior citizen passengers is a continuous process. The expenditure on provision of differently-abled passenger-friendly amenities is generally funded under Plan Head Passenger Amenities. Adequate additional funds, if required, are made available to Zonal Railways for such works, depending upon availability and inter-se priority of works. An amount of Rs.1838.28 Crore (Budget Estimate) has been allocated under Plan Head Passenger Amenities for the current financial year 2016-17. Standard ramps for barrier-free easy access have been provided at about 1780 Railway stations. In order to facilitate easy movement of elderly and differently-abled passengers, as per the existing guidelines, A-1 category stations qualify for provision of escalators/elevators while A category, C category and stations of tourist importance qualify for provision of escalators under Desirable Amenities. So far, 316 no. of escalators at 129 stations and 178 no. of lifts at 79 stations have been provided across Indian Railways. This Press Release is based on the information given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha on 16.12.2016 (Friday).
