Railway Budget 2025: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will soon be announcing FY26 capex outlay for railways in the Union Budget 2025 and stock investors would be keenly tracking the focus areas this time. In the ongoing financial year, the progress in the expansion of the railway network stayed at levels comparable to the previous year, while the addition of rolling stock increased considerably. Between April and October 2024, 17 new pairs of Vande Bharat trains were introduced to the network, and 228 coaches were produced, the Economic Survey noted yesterday.
Stock analysts see increased allocation for the Vande Bharat Trains and expect 400 new trains to be inducted. The strong ordering on the coaches and trainset, Antique Stock Broking said, would be positive for Siemens Ltd, BEML Ltd, BHEL and Titagarh Rail Systems Ltd. Any increase in allocation for Kavach, would be positive for players such as RailTel Ltd, HBL Power Systems Ltd and Kernex Microsystems Ltd. Overall it sees railway outlay of Rs 2.7-2.8 lakh crore, up 8-10 per cent YoY, which would benefit RITES, Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL), IRCON International Ltd and others. This was against a 5 per cent rise in allocation for FY25.
Net-net stock analysts are largely looking at the railway Budget of Rs 2,70,000 crore to Rs 3,00,000 crore. Emkay Global sees allocations for new tracks to rise 50 per cent YoY to Rs 50,000 crore in FY26, aimed at boosting rail logistics share to 45 per cent. Vision 2047 targets 100,000km new alignments in 25 years, at the cost of Rs 15-20 lakh crore, it noted.
If such an announcement is made, it would be positive for EPC and railways players such as KEC International, RVNL and CG Power, it said.
Ravi Singh of Religare Broking said the government might allocate higher funds for electrification, high-speed rail, dedicated freight corridors and also for digital transformation.
"Priority segments likely include Vande Bharat trains, station modernisation, and green initiatives. Stocks to focus on include IRCON International, RITES Ltd, Texmaco Rail, and Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) for infrastructure and logistics. Companies like Siemens India and Sterling and Wilson Solar may benefit from electrification and renewable energy initiatives," Singh said.
Ajay Garg, CEO at SMC Global Securities believes stocks such as IRCON International, RVNL, Larsen & Toubro and Indian Railway Finance Corporation Ltd will be in focus.
For FY2026, he sees railway allocation at Rs 2.7–Rs 3 lakh crore, aligning with India’s long-term infrastructure development goals. Segments such as freight and logistics, passenger comfort, railway infrastructure and green railways may prioritise this budget, he added.
Manish Chowdhury, Head of Research at StoxBox said the outlook for the railway sector remains positive from the Budget's perspective. He has RVNL, BEML and IRFC as his top picks.