Govt allocates highest ever budget for Indian Railways

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2023-24 in Lok Sabha on Monday, proposing a capital outlay of approximately Rs 2.40 lakh crore for railways.

This budgeted outlay for the railways, Sitharaman told Parliament, is the highest ever and nine times what it was in 2013. Overall, the government proposed to increase capital expenditure outlay by 33% to Rs 10 lakh crore in 2023-24, which would be 3.3% of the GDP, said Nirmala Sitharaman. “(This overall outlay) would be 3.3% of GDP, almost three times the outlay made in 2019-20.

With the substantial increase, it is central to government’s efforts to enhance growth potential and job creation, the crowd in private investments and provides a cushion against global headwinds,” Sitharaman said. Further, the government proposes to increase the agricultural credit target to Rs 20 lakh crore with a focus on animal husbandry, dairy, and fisheries, Sitharaman told Parliament. The agriculture sector of the country has been growing at an average annual growth rate of 4.6% in the last six years.