Railways' revenue declined by Rs 36,993 crore in 2020 due to pandemic: Govt

The revenue of Indian Railways dipped by Rs 36,993 crore in 2020, in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, Union railway Minister Piyush Goyal informed the Parliament amid the Budget session.

Goyal, in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, said this decline in revenue was due to the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, consequential lockdown and partial operation of passenger services.

"Total traffic revenue of railways in the current year to the end of December 2020 has declined by Rs 36,993.82 crore compared to the corresponding period of last year," Goyal said.

Out of total loss in revenue, Rs 32,768.97 crore was because of a decline in passenger revenues, he added.

"In view of the COVID-19 pandemic situation, Indian Railways has not been encouraging movement of passengers to effectively manage the pandemic and contain its spread. Keeping in view the concerns and suggestions of state governments to efficiently manage COVID-19 pandemic, special trains are operated," he said.

Further, Goyal informed that Indian Railways has identified six projects all across the country in various zones which will be completed by March 2021.

This year, in the Union Budget 2021. the Centre allocated Rs 1.10 lakh crore to Railways, out of which Rs 1.07 lakh crore will be utilised for capital expenditure for 2021-22 to expand rail infrastructure in India. With this, the railways has now highest ever total plan capex of Rs 2,15,058  crore in for FY22.

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