Rail Budget: Bengal sore, Kerala happy

Alleging 'neglect' of West Bengal in the Railway Budget, two major ruling Left Front partners in the state said on Monday it was aimed at serving 'interests of big industrial houses'.

''Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav seemes to be ignorant of West Bengal in his Budget which has no significant project for the state. Rather, it is projected to serve big industrial houses in the name of being pro-poor'', Forward Bloc State General Secretary Ashok Ghosh told PTI.

Ghosh alleged the state had got nothing in this Budget except for the Howrah-Rampurhat Express train. Besides, the minister did not take look at the requirements of North Bengal.

Another Left Front constituent Revolutionary Socialist Party of India said West Bengal was 'deprived in the Rail Budget as the demands for new trains and development proposals were not met'.

RSP leader Amar Chowdhury said there should have been announcement of introduction of new trains connecting the backward district of Purulia and Bankura with

North Bengal.

He, however, said the Budget contained some welcome features like improvement of passenger amenities and no hike in passenger fare and freight rates.

Kerala government happy: Kerala's Left Democratic Front government welcomed the Railway Budget for 2007-08 on Monday as it met some of the state's demands for new trains and development proposals, including the plan to set up a wagon unit at Cherthala in Alappuzha district.

"The Budget is generally welcome, going by the information so far available," Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan told reporters in Thiruvanthapuram.

The proposal to start new trains to upcountry centres with large presence of Keralites and the plan to electrify Thiruvananthapuram-Kanyakumari and Thrissur-Guruvayur lines would benefit the state, he said.

Law Minister M Vijayakumar, who liaisons with the Railway Ministry, said Kerala received some consideration this time, which was the result of persistent follow-up by the state government with the Centre.