Railways Budget: Engineers need to recognise tech advantage, says expert

Stagnation in technology is reflected in dependence on manpower-intensive maintenance practices and poor quality

The government’s commitment to Railways as an infrastructure industry, a job creator and a service provider for the common man, is reflected in the Budget. The rise  in capex and initiatives like outsourcing 150 new trains are welcome.

As the government plans outsourcing intercity train services, the railways’ key performance indicators (KPIs) and likely financial results of FY20 will be of critical interest to investors. Take freight. I do not see any impending slowdown from the ongoing year’s railway freight performance results. A true analysis of freight performance will start from the traffic output — net tonne kms (NTKMs). The Q1