With no significant projects announced for the city, the railway budget was a disappointment for the 75 lakh Mumbaiites who use local trains every day.
All the budget had for Mumbai was Rs 400 crore for the ongoing Mumbai Urban Transport Project-II, the promise to start the first AC local train on the western line, 72 new train services and the survey for two new lines – the Kalyan-Karjat third line and Naigaon-Juchandra link.
Several new outstation trains were also announced, including a weekly AC train to Delhi via Bhopal.
CM Prithviraj Chavan said it was a “balanced” budget, but passenger associations were disappointed. Deputy CM Ajit Pawar also criticised the budget.
A railway official said the total budgetary allocation for Mumbai adds up to around Rs. 1,600 crore, but that includes the share of the stakeholders (such as the state and World Bank) as well.