The Ministry of Railways on Sunday received its highest-ever outlay in the Union Budget, with the Centre allocating a total capital expenditure (capex) of Rs 2,93,030 crore for the financial year 2026–27.
“The provision under capital expenditure towards New Lines, Gauge conversion, Doubling, Traffic facilities, Rolling Stock, etc. is met from the gross budgetary support. A total outlay of Rs 2,77,830 crore is provided for capital expenditure in BE 2026-27. Further amount of Rs 200 crore is being met from Nirbhaya Fund in BE 2026-27,” the statement said.
To promote environmentally sustainable passenger systems, in her Budget speech, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman proposed to develop seven High-Speed Rail corridors between cities as ‘growth connectors’, namely i) Mumbai-Pune, ii) Pune-Hyderabad, iii) Hyderabad-Bengaluru, iv) Hyderabad-Chennai, v) Chennai-Bengaluru, vi) Delhi-Varanasi, vii) Varanasi-Siliguri.
Later, addressing mediapersons here, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, “Today’s railway budget of Rs 2,78,000 crore is clearly a step in that direction… Seven new high-speed corridors have been announced today. These high-speed corridors will significantly reduce travel time, bringing about a major change in people’s lives.”
“Chennai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad–that southern triangle — will drive significant economic growth across the southern states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka. This will be a major, major win for all five southern states,” he said.
Vaishnaw further stated that about 4,000 kilometres of high-speed corridors will attract Rs 16 lakh crore in investment.
“Then, Mumbai, Pune, and Hyderabad will also become major economic corridors. In northern India, Delhi, Varanasi, and Siliguri will connect Delhi, UP, Bihar, and West Bengal in a major economic corridor, which will bring about a huge change in the way people travel. It will boost tourism and economic activity across UP, Bihar, West Bengal, and Delhi,” he added.
Elaborating further about the corridors, Vaishnaw said, “The corridor, connecting Delhi to Varanasi and several cities in Uttar Pradesh in North India, will allow travel between Delhi and Varanasi in just 3 hours and 50 minutes.”
He said from Varanasi to Siliguri in West Bengal, via Patna, the journey will take only 2 hours and 55 minutes. This will greatly multiply and benefit travel and activity for healthcare, education, and any other purpose across Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal.
“Seven new corridors totalling approximately 4000 kilometres, and the investment in them will be around Rs 16 crore. A major announcement has also been made regarding a new dedicated freight corridor. We all know about the significant progress of the Western Corridor, which has already reached saturation levels,” he said.
Vaishnaw said four freight corridors are already operational, and this new corridor will connect Durgapur in West Bengal, passing through Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra, terminating in Surat, Gujarat, where it will connect with the Western Corridor.
“This will allow any industry to send its goods to any port on the west coast, whether in Gujarat or Maharashtra, by connecting to the Western Corridor. So, in a way, the Western Corridor, the Eastern Corridor, and this East-West Freight Corridor – this 2052-kilometer East-West Freight Corridor and the seven high-speed corridors – will give a totally new transformation and energy to the railways,” he said.
Talking about train accidents, Vaishnaw said Ninety-five per cent of train accidents have been reduced.
“Now, by focusing even more on maintenance, track maintenance, loco maintenance, wagon maintenance, coach maintenance, rapid installation of Kavach, installation of CCTV cameras, upgrading the OHE (Overhead Electrical) system, and constructing new stations, safety will be further improved, and customer care and customer facilities will be enhanced,” Vaishnaw said.
He further said the progress of the Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed corridor is being noticed by the entire world.
“The work is progressing so rapidly and with such high quality, and with the announcement of these seven new high-speed corridors, the transportation sector in the country will be completely transformed,” he added.