Jayalalithaa disappointed with Rail Budget

CHENNAI - All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) supremo J Jayalalithaa has said that Tamil Nadu has gained little from the Rail Budget, as Mamata Banerjee has announced major projects for Nandigram and Singur, where she had launched a successful political battle some years ago.

“Tamil Nadu has nothing much to exult about. Barring a few suburban trains and a couple of Duranto expresses, no new trains have been announced for the State. Mamata Banerjee has predictably presented the Nation’s Railways Budget, 2011, keeping the Assembly Elections in her home state in mind,” said Jayalalithaa.

“She has announced major projects for Nandigram and Singur where she had launched a successful political battle some years ago. The overwhelming impression that a national resource has been hijacked by the Minister to serve local political ends cannot be dispelled nor denied,” she added.

The AIADMK chief further said Banerjee’s third Railways Budget is a common man’s budget to the extent that it does not envisage any hike in passenger rates.

“Several new projects have been announced. However, with most of the schemes announced in last year’s budget remaining unimplemented, the Union Railways Minister’s track record for project implementation is rather uninspiring,” said Jayalalithaa.

“The Railways Ministry’s finances are in the doldrums. Nothing imaginative has been done to raise additional revenue. This would inflict huge damage on the national economy and push the world’s largest railways network to the brink,” she added.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had earlier today said Mamata Banerjee’s budget has been prepared with an eye for upcoming West Bengal assembly polls, while rest of India has been neglected. (ANI)