Allocation of Rs 55,000 crore for Railways is a step in the right direction with around 70 new projects identified.

- Harsh Dhingra, Chief Country Representative, India, Bombardier Transportation Harsh Dhingra, Chief Country Representative, India, Bombardier Transportation, on the Union Budget 2017-18: Commuters and industry can rejoice with focussed reforms on Railways advancement. Bombardier betting big on Indian rail market and for exports.   Bombardier is pleased with focused reforms, new projects announced and stress on safety initiatives in the budget. It clearly outlines the path and focus on safety with a focused fund having corpus of Rs 100,000 crore. Safety is also one of the topmost priorities for Bombardier. Bombardier is excited with the prospects on increasing speeds, electrifying current and existing lines, dedicated freight and passenger lines which shall increase the demand for procurement of rolling stock, rail equipment and signalling systems. Funding was one of the biggest issues for Railways earlier and we are pleased with the concentrated efforts on outlining investments and funding avenues with innovative financing models. Allocation of Rs 55,000 crore for Railways is a step in the right direction with around 70 new projects identified. Capital and development expenditure pegged at Rs 1.31 lakh crore for railways in 2017-18 from Budget. We are pleased with the concentrated efforts to transform the rail industry in India. Metro policy for India will create more jobs and help standardisation of metro systems in India. Bombardier is one of the largest metro suppliers in India and new metro policy is a win-win for the industry and rail transportation sector.  Bombardier is one of the major global suppliers for commuter and intercity trains along with semi-high speed (upto 200 km per hour) and high-speed trains (from 250 to 380 km per hour) across the world and we are delighted with the prospects of such projects gaining momentum in this budget. With stress on Make in India, Bombardier is one of the few rail companies in India which is truly supporting Indian Government’s Make in India campaign. Bombardier Transportation is not only making rail products and solutions for the Indian market which are manufactured in India but also delivering it for exports from India. Bombardier truly resembles ‘Make in India for India’ and ‘Make in India for the World’. Bombardier is exploring various projects in India which are strategic for our local operations and are pleased with the actions taken to increase train speeds, upgrade existing rail infrastructure with increased track capacity, improve passenger comfort and technology innovations. Bombardier will keenly follow projects on Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) which is one of the prime focus for Indian Railways.  In terms of transforming ways to operate, Bombardier clearly sees that Railways wants to objectively review and focus on life cycle costs rather than the capital cost of procurement. This is a very positive sign for the rail industry that can build momentum for transforming rail transport experience for the commuters in the years to come.