PM MODI REVOLUTIONIZING INDIA ISRAEL RELATIONS

On 17 September 1950, India officially recognised the State of Israel. From India's recognition of Israel in 1950 to the early 1990s, the relationship remained informal in nature. India formally established relations with Israel when it opened an embassy in Tel Aviv in January 1992. Since the upgradation of relations in 1992, defence and agriculture formed the two main pillars of our bilateral engagement. Ties between the two nations have flourished since, primarily due to common strategic interests and security threats.

In recent years, the bilateral trade has diversified into several areas such as Textiles, Pearls & Precious Stones, Mineral Products, Chemicals, Metals, Machinery & Transport Equipments, Pharmaceuticals, Agriculture, Water Management, IT & Telecom, Science & Technology, Defense and Homeland Security and the future vision of the cooperation is of a strong hi-tech partnership as it befits two knowledge economies.

Bilateral Diplomatic Visits during NDA rule:

1. Eizer Wiezman became the first Israeli President to Visit India in 1997.
2. In 2000, L.K. Advani became the first Indian minister to visit the state of Israel followed by Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh.
3. In 2003, Ariel Sharon was the first Israeli Prime Minister to visit India.
4. Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi visited Israel in October 2006.
5. PM Modi met PM Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly during his US visit in 2014. Home Minister Rajnath Singh visited Israel in November 2014 to observe the country's border security arrangements. This was followed by visit of Israeli President Shimon Peres visit to India.
6. In February 2015 Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Ya'alon visited India to participate in Aero India 2015. Pranab Mukherjee became the first President Of India to visit Israel from October 2015.
7. Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj visited Israel in January 2016 followed by visit of Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh in September 2016. This was followed by reciprocal visit of Israeli President Reuven Rivlin to India in November 2016, becoming the second Israeli President to visit the country.

OFFICIAL VISITS:

• PM Modi’s visit to Israel in July 2017.
• PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to India in January 2018.

Marking the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Israel from 4-6 July 2017 at the invitation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.

Key Highlights of PM Modi’s visit to Israel (4-6 July 2017) :

1. Bilateral relationship elevated to Strategic Partnership.
2. Both leaders visualized that the two countries will become close partners in development, technology, innovation, entrepreneurship, defence and security.
3. India and Israel agreed to establish a "Strategic Partnership in Water and Agriculture” and will focus on water conservation, waste-water treatment and its reuse for agriculture, desalination, water utility reforms, and the cleaning of the Ganges and other rivers using advanced water technologies.
4. In order to encourage greater economic and commercial exchanges, India and Israel underlined their expectation of granting of multiple entry visas to business people for up to five years.
5. Israel welcomed India’s offer to be the "Partner Country” for the annual Technology Summit to be held in India in 2018.
6. Both sides agreed to upgrade their scientific and technological collaboration by supporting joint research and development projects in the cutting edge areas, including ‘Big Data Analytics in Health Care’.
7. To reaffirm the importance of bilateral defense cooperation over the years, it was agreed that future developments in this sphere should focus on joint development of defense products, including transfer of technology from Israel, with a special emphasis on the 'Make in India' initiative.
8. In order to promote stability and security on both governmental and private level in cyberspace, India and Israel to lay a mutual road map for implementation.
9. Recognizing that terrorism poses a grave threat to global peace and stability, the two Prime Ministers reiterated their strong commitment to combat it in all its forms and manifestations. Both leaders committed to cooperate for the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT).
10. Both leaders reaffirmed their commitments as envisaged in the agreement on cooperation on Homeland and Public Security.
11. Noting the importance of growing people to people contacts between India and Israel, the two leaders agreed to facilitate the promotion of travel & tourism in both directions, including through the further enhancement of air links between India and Israel.

During the visit, the following Agreements were signed:

• MoU between the Department of Science & Technology, India and National Technological Innovation Authority, Israel for setting up of India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund (I4F).
•  MoU between the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation of the Republic of India and the Ministry of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources of the State of Israel on National Campaign for Water Conservation in India.
• MoU between U.P. Jal Nigam, Government of Uttar Pradesh, of the Republic of India and the Ministry of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources of the State of Israel on State Water Utility Reform in India.
• India-Israel Development Cooperation - Three Year Work Program in Agriculture 2018-2020.
• Plan of Cooperation Between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Israel Space Agency (ISA) regarding cooperation in Atomic Clocks.
• MoU between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Israel Space Agency (ISA) regarding cooperation in GEO-LEO Optical Link.
• MoU between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Israel Space Agency (ISA) regarding cooperation in Electric Propulsion for Small Satellites.

Key Highlights of PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to India (14-19 January 2018):

1. India and Israel are working together on a Five Year Joint Work Plan for strategic cooperation in Agriculture and Water. 
2. Both sides agreed to deepen cooperation in innovation, business and trade, space, homeland security and cyber, higher education and research, science and technology, tourism and culture.
3. The two prime ministers noted the commencement and implementation of India-Israel development cooperation - three-year work programme in Agriculture (2018-2020) under the stewardship of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MASHAV) and the Ministry of Agriculture of India aimed at increasing farmers’ productivity and optimization of water use efficiency.
4. The two Prime Ministers were apprised of state of progress on the twenty-eight Centres of Excellence that are being jointly established in different States of India, and that seven more Centres of Excellence have become operational since the visit of the PM Modi to Israel. The two Prime Ministers will be visiting Centre of Excellence in Vadrad, Gujarat and will inaugurate the Centre of Excellence in Bhuj, Gujarat.
5. The Prime Ministers welcomed the completion of all formalities for the launch of the India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund (I4F) that was announced during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Israel.
6. In order to build a strong network between the next generation of the best women scientists and technologists of the two countries, an India-Israel Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Symposium will be organized in October, 2018 in India.
7. Initiation of cooperation between India and Israel in the energy sector with the signing of an MoU on Cooperation in the Oil and Gas sector that will promote, inter alia, collaboration in the upstream sectors, research and development in future technologies and start-ups in oil and gas.
8. Israel declared its willingness to be a “Partner Country” in International Solar Alliance.
9. The two Prime Ministers decided to expedite the conclusion of an Agreement on Maritime Transport that will encourage greater business between the shipping organizations of India and Israel, and create new opportunities in maritime services and training. This Agreement encourage wider cooperation in development of maritime business and Israel’s participation in the Sagarmala Project.
10. An Indian Cultural Centre will open in Israel in 2018 to promote greater cultural understanding. Both sides have signed an MoU in Film Co-Production in recognition of the role that films play in promoting people-to-people contact.
11. Both Prime Ministers agreed to holding Festivals of India and Israel in their respective countries in the Year 2019 to further solidify friendship between the peoples of both countries.
12. Both Prime Ministers noted the readiness of Israeli companies to enter into joint ventures with Indian companies in the defence sector under the “Make in India” initiative.
13. Both sides reiterated the importance of building comprehensive cooperation in counter-terrorism, including cyber-space, and welcome the signing of the MoU on Cooperation in Cyber Security between India and Israel.
14. The two Prime Ministers discussed the developments pertaining to the Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process. They reaffirmed their support for an early resumption of peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians for arriving at a comprehensive negotiated solution on all outstanding issues, based on mutual recognition and effective security arrangements, for establishing a just and durable peace in the region.

       List of MOU’s/Agreements signed:

•  MOU on Cybersecurity.
•  MOU in Oil & Gas Sector
•   Air Transport Agreement
•   Film Co-Production Agreement
•   MOU for research in Homeopathic medicine
•   MOU for cooperation in Space
•   MOU between Invest India and Invest in Israel
•   Letter of Intent for cooperation in the area of metal-air batteries.
•  Letter of Intent in the area of concentrated solar thermal technologies

HIGHLIGHTS OF PM MODI’S GULF AND WEST ASIA OUTREACH: PALESTINE, UAE AND OMAN

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as a part of Gulf and West Asia outreach visited Palestine, UAE and Oman from 9 February to 12 February 2018. The visit was planned to cover Strategic, Economic, Energy, Defence, Security and Maritime security agenda.

HIGHLIGHTS OF PALESTINE VISIT (10 February 2018)

The visit to Palestine was planned to show de-hyphenation with Israel as the visit to Ramallah transiting through Jordan.

1. In a historic visit, PM Modi became the first Prime Minister to visit Palestine.
2. In a special recognition of the Prime Minister’s contribution to relations between India and Palestine, President Abbas conferred on him the highest honour for a foreign dignitary “Grand Collar of the State of Palestine”.
3. Emphasized old and historical relations between India and Palestine and support to Palestinian cause to become a sovereign and independent country in a peaceful atmosphere.
4. Paid tributes at the tomb of Abu Omar, a top leader of his time and a distinguished friend of India.
5. India contributes in Palestine Nation Building efforts and has cooperation in the areas of training, technology, infrastructure development, project assistance and budgetary support.
6. As a part of new initiative, India started a “Technology Park” project in Ramallah which is currently under construction and after its creation,  will work as a centre to enhance employment skills and services.
7. India is collaborating to set up an “Institute of Diplomacy” in Ramallah. This institute will emerge as a world-class training institute for the young diplomats of Palestine.
8. India collaborates in capacity building involving  mutual training for long and short-term courses. Training and scholarship slots for Palestine in leading Indian educational institutions of different sectors such as finance, management, rural development and information technology are extended recently. 
9. At the bilateral level, India agreed to make relations deeper through the Ministerial level Joint Commission Meeting.
10.  In 2017, for the first time, there was an exchange between the youth delegations of India and Palestine. Since youth are the future and inheritors of friendship, India announced an exchange of young persons from 50 to 100 this year.
11. Six MOU’s were signed between India and Palestine valued more than $ 40 million: Setting up of super speciality hospital at Beit Sahour in Bethelhem, setting  up of new National Printing Press at Ramallah, construction of India Palestine centre for Empowering Women “Turathi”, construction of school in Tamoon village and Muthalth Al Shuhada.

 HIGHLIGHTS OF UAE VISIT (10-11 February)

Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Indo-UAE relations have reached an extraordinary level of friendship and bonhomie. India and UAE have exchanged four high level visits. These included two by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan in February 2016 and January 2017, and two by Prime Minister Modi in August 2015 and February 2018. Additionally, regular meetings between ministers and officials have been held in New Delhi and Abu Dhabi to discuss issues of mutual interest, especially investments in energy sector, increasing defense and security ties and strengthening counter-terror cooperation.

In January 2017, during the visit of Crown Prince al-Nahyan to New Delhi as chief guest for Republic Day celebrations, India and the UAE signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) agreement to give a new impetus to the strong bilateral relations. The focus areas underlined in the CSP were economy with emphasis on two-way flow of investments, counter-terror cooperation and defense ties. Since then, the two sides have been working to realize the goals of forging a strong strategic partnership through regular exchange of visits, improve bilateral trade and investments, greater understanding of security concerns and vulnerabilities and readiness to harness on the momentum created due to greater political understanding.

UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan visited India 24-30 June 2018. The key highlight of his visit was the signing of the trilateral agreement between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), Saudi Arabia’s national oil company Aramco and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas for the joint development of the Ratnagiri Refineries and Petrochemical Limited (RRPCL) in Maharashtra with an estimated cost of US $44 billion. The RRPCL will be one of the world’s largest oil refineries and expected to have a capacity of 60 million metric tons per annum. As per the agreement, the IOL, Aramco and ADNOC will have 25 percent stake each in the RRPCL while HPCL and BPCL will have 12.5 per cent stake each.

Key Highlights:

1. Prime Minister Modi delivered his key note address on the theme- "Technology for Development”- at the sixth World Government Summit in Dubai, where India was invited as the Guest of Honour. Prime Minister Modi met with a select group of senior GCC CEOs and Business Leaders.
2. Both leaders reviewed the progress made in implementing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership agreement signed during the last visit of Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed to India in January 2017. Both leaders reviewed bilateral engagement in the past two years across a whole range of spheres, including Combating Extremism and Counter Terrorism, Security, Defence and Space Cooperation, Trade, Investment and Civil Aviation, Energy and Climate Change, People and Skill Development, Culture, Education and Tourism, International and Regional Cooperation.
3. Four MOU’s were signed and exchanged related to Railway, Manpower, Financial Services and Energy Sector. In the energy sector, MOU signed between ONGC led consortium and ADNOC for acquisition of 10% participating interest in the ADMA-OPCO field in lower Zakum.
4. Review of the progress being made in early implementation of the agreement on Oil Storage and Management between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited signed in January 2017 and underscored that crude oil supply from UAE for the Mangalore cavern would be a significant transformational step in building a strategic partnership in the energy sector.
5. To conduct first bilateral Naval Exercise in 2018 as per decision taken during the latest round of Joint Defence Cooperation Committee JDCC held in New Delhi in December 2017.
6. The UAE side renewed its interest in the coastal surveillance systems and patrol vessels developed by India. India to supply Naval Offshore Patrol Vessels to UAE.
7. Both leaders noted the excellent trade and economic ties between the two countries, which amounted to about USD 53 billion in 2016-17. The two sides agreed to further strengthen these ties through diversifying non-oil trade.
8. Both leaders welcomed launch of Nayif-1 Nano satellite of UAE by Indian Space Research Organisation in February, 2017. Former ISRO Chairman joined the Advisory Board of the UAE Space Agency.
9. Both leaders reviewed the progress in realizing the USD 75 billion target for UAE investments in India committed towards infrastructure development. Prime Minister Modi welcomed Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA’s) participation in India’s National Infrastructure Investment Fund (NIIF) as an anchor investor and welcomed DP World's agreement with NIIF to create a joint investment platform for ports, terminals, transportation and logistics businesses in India. He also welcomed UAE’s continued interest in investing in infrastructure development in India, especially in priority areas such as renewable energy, power generation and transmission, defence production, real estate, industrial corridors and parks, railways, roads, ports, shipping, logistics and food processing among others.

HIGHLIGHTS OF OMAN VISIT ( 11-12 February 2018)

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, Sultan of Oman and the Indian Prime Minister exchanged views on bilateral, regional and global issues of common interest. The two sides stressed that India and Oman, as maritime neighbours across the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea, have enjoyed historically close bilateral ties, involving vibrant maritime trade and cultural exchanges, and have expanded into strategic partnership based on trust and mutual respect. The two sides covered discussions on 1) Regional Security and Combatting Terrorism 2) Security, Defence and Space Cooperation 3) Trade & Investment  4) Energy 5) Space & IT  6) Cultural, Educational & Tourism Exchanges  7) Health & Food Security  8) Consular Matters & Indian Community 8) UN reforms.

List of Agreements/MOU’s were signed during PM Modi’s visit to Oman

• Agreement on Legal and Judicial Cooperation in Civil and Commercial matter
• Agreement on mutual visa exemption for holders of diplomatic, Special, service and official passports.
• MoU on Cooperation in the field of health.
• MoU on Cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space.
• MoU on Cooperation between Foreign Service Institute, Ministry of External Affairs, India and Oman Diplomatic Institute.
• MoU on Academic and Scholarly cooperation sectors between National Defence College Sultanate of Oman and the Institute for Defence Studies and the Analyses.
• MoU in the field of Tourism cooperation between India and Oman.
• Annexure to the MoU on Military Cooperation.

 KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

1. The two sides expressed satisfaction over the current state of bilateral relations, especially the robust security and defence cooperation, and agreed to further expand their cooperation to new areas of mutual interest, including inter-alia, space, cyber security, energy security, renewable energy and food security etc., with a view to take the strategic partnership to a higher level.
2. The two sides exchanged views on regional and international issues of common interest, including the security situation in West Asia, Middle East and South Asia. The fruitful and productive discussions enabled the two sides to better understand and appreciate each other’s concerns and perspectives.
3. The two sides underlined the importance of coordinated efforts to disrupt terrorist networks, their financing and movement, in accordance with the relevant principles and purposes of the UN Charter and international laws. In this regard, the two sides called for early conclusion of negotiations on the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the United Nations.
4. The two sides agreed to enhance cooperation in the fields of law enforcement, anti-money laundering and prevention of smuggling of currency, drug trafficking, human trafficking, illegal migration and other transnational organized crimes.
5. The two sides noted that the MOU on Military Cooperation signed in 2005 and renewed in 2016 has provided the general framework to strengthen bilateral defence ties. They further noted that the MoUs on cooperation in maritime security and between Coast Guards of the two countries signed in May 2016 have provided a firm foundation for deepening institutional interactions.
6. The two sides agreed to provide further impetus to the robust defence relations, including through regular holding of joint exercises by the three defence forces, training of navy, air and army officials, as also cooperation in the area of coastal defence and through participation in defence exhibitions etc.
7. The Omani side acknowledged the opportunities offered under the 'Make in India' initiative for joint production of defence equipment in India and also for the procurement of defence material from India. The two sides agreed to explore further opportunities in these areas of common interest.
8. The two sides agreed to enhance cooperation to strengthen maritime security in the Gulf and the Indian Ocean regions. They further agreed to promote bilateral collaboration for humanitarian assistance and evacuation in natural disasters and conflict situations.
9. The Indian Prime Minister welcomed the invitation to Indian companies to invest in various sectors in the special economic zones of Oman, including SEZs in Duqm, Sohar and Salalah. The Indian Prime Minister offered India’s partnership and cooperation in areas of priority, such as minerals and mining, manufacturing, logistics, infrastructure, tourism, agriculture and fisheries, IT and IT enabled-services, skills development, innovation etc.
10. The Indian Prime Minister apprised His Majesty the various key initiatives of the Government, including "Start Up India”, "Make in India”, "Smart City”, "Digital India” and "Clean India”, highlighting their strong potential to provide Indian economy a positive thrust for sustained growth. The Indian Prime Minister highlighted the major initiatives taken by his Government, including for improving the ease of doing business and invited Omani Sovereign Wealth Funds, including State General Reserve Fund, and private businesses to invest in India. The two sides expressed their commitment to encourage mutual investments and agreed that India-Oman Joint Investment Fund could be an important mechanism to raise funds for two-way investments.
11. The Indian Prime Minister reiterated India's invitation to Oman to participate in building the strategic oil reserves in India. 

MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS AND INITIATIVES OF MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS UNDER PM NARENDRA MODI

FOUR YEARS PERFORMANCE OF MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

1.     Highest Priority Of Safety

§  Consequential rail accidents reduced to 62% from 118 in 2013-14 to 73 in 2017-18.

§  50% increase in rail renewals from 2926 kms in 2013-14 to 4405 kms in 2017-18.

§  1.1 lakh safety posts filled-up through recruitment.

§  Fund of Rs 1 lakh crore created for safety expenditure under RASHTRIYA RAIL SANRAKSHA KOSH. Already Rs. 16,000 Crore has been spent.

§  221% increase in FOOT OVER BRIDGES (FOBS) constructed per year from 23 during 2009-14 to 74 during 2014-18.

§  3 FOBS at Elphistone Road -Parel, Curry Road and Ambivali in Mumbai constructed with the help of army.

§  CCTV/Video surveillance systems being installed in all stations and trains.

§  Highest ever construction of Road Over Bridge/Road Under Bridge/Subways from 415 per year in 2004-2014 to 1220 per year from 2014-2018, a three times increase in average construction per year.

§   5479 Unmanned Level Crossing (UMLC) eliminated in the last 4 years.

2.     Quantum Leap In Capital Expenditure:

§  Rs. 2.3 lakh crore in 2009-14 to Rs. 5.29 lakh crore in 2014-2019 which includes budget estimate 2018-19.

3.     Capacity Enhancement:

§  In order to build infrastructure for tomorrow, average pace of commissioning of New Line/Doubling/3^rd & 4rth line projects increased by 59% from 4.1 kms in 2009-14 to 6.5 kms per day in 20014-2018.

4.    Connecting India “Act East Policy”

§  Entire network in North East converted to Broad Guage

§  One of the highest bridges in the world being built on Jiribam-Imphal New Line Project.

§  Railway connectivity established with Meghalaya (Dudhnoi-Mendipathar), Tripura (Kumarghat-Agartala) and Mizoram (Kathakal-Bhairabi).

§  1,397 kms of new lines projects costing Rs. 51, 428 crore in progress.

5.     Major Thrust to Suburban Network

§  Development of Bengaluru Suburban system with Rs. 17,000 crore in budget 2018-19. It will benefit 15 lakh commutors.

§  Upgradation of Mumbai suburban system with Rs. 54,777 crore in budget 2018-19 with  new corridors, additional lines/extensions and improving signalling.

§  Increased passenger comfort due to air-conditioned coaches and developed stations.

6.    First Ever Bullet Train in India: Mumbai  Ahmedabad High Speed Rail

§  Shinkasen technology with record zero fatalities in 50 years and train delay record of less than a minute.

§  Will reduce travel time from approximately 8 hours to 2 hours.

§  Low cost funding from government of Japan bearing 0.1% interest, with  a  15 year lock-in period, repayable in 50-60 years makes it affordable.

§  Huge direct and indirect employment opportunities

§  “Make in India” to make India a leader in High Speed Technology.

7.     Make in India

§    Electric locomative factory at Madhepura in Bihar. The Electric Locomotive Factory Madhepura is a joint venture of Alstom SA of France with Indian Railways for the production of 800 high-power locomotives over a period of 11 years designed to run on Indian tracks at 120 km per hour. The manufacturing has started on 11 October 2017.

§  Upcoming project: Coach manufacturing of suburban and metro trains at Latur, Marathwada.

§  Upcoming Project: Factory for refurbishment of LHB coaches sactioned at New Bongaigaon, Assam.

§ Upcoming project: Diesel Multiple Unit (DEMU)/Mainline Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) shed sanctioned at Jhansi, Bundelkhand and Sonepat, Haryana.

8.    Railways Electrified

§  Highest ever electrification from 610 Route kilometers (RKU) to 4087 RKU in 2017-18.

§  Speed: First ever conversion of a locomotive from diesel to electric traction in the world. New indigenous electric locomotives delivers 5,000 HP, 92% more than the older version. New generation 12,000 HP locomotives being produced for increased energy efficiency and speed of freight trains.

§  Savings: Savings of approximately Rs. 13,500 crore per year expected from complete electrification. Will contribute to India’s energy security and improve trade deficit.

§ Reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainable environment.

9.    Signalling New Railways

§  Modern signalling systems to be introduced in Indian Railways.

§  Rs. 1,299 crore investment for improving signalling systems during 2017-18, 31% higher than previous year.

§  State of the art electronic interlocking systems provided at 208 stations in 2017-18, 26% higher than previous year.

10.  Moving India’s Economy

§  Goal for 2022 is to increase market share of freight transport from 33% to 45%

§  Encouraging private participation in infrastructure and operations of freight traffic. Through Private Freight Policy (PFT), 58 PFT’s notified.

§  New Policy to encourage private investment in wagons issued. Highest ever freight loading of 1,162 MT in 2017-18 vs 1,052 MT in 2013-14, an increase of 10.5%.

§  Highest ever freight earnings, expected to be over Rs. 1.17 lakh crores in 2017-18, 12% above previous year.

11.   Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFC)

§  Commissioning of Eastern and Western DFCs (2822 kms) in phases by 2019-20.

§  Contracts worth Rs. 39,157 crores awarded during the last four years as compared to contracts Rs. 12,747 crores awarded upto March 2014 (more than 200% increase).

§  Reduction in freight travel time, transportation cost and de-congestion in existing network.

§  Economic development and job creation by connecting factories and farms to ports.

§  Create hubs of economic development.

12.  Station Development

§  Stations recategorized to ensure better amenities for passengers

§  More objective criteria which will take into account earnings, passenger footfall, strategic importance.

§   68 stations to be improved by railways by March 2019.

§  Beautification of 60 stations already completed using local art,

§  Redevelopment of Habibganj station, Madhya Pradesh and Gandhinagar station by December 2018.

§   All railway stations fitted with 100 LED lights.

13.  Upgradation of Passenger Coaches

§  Interiors of 5000 coaches including mail/passenger trains to be improved by March 2019.

§  First ever indigenous train set to be commissioned this year.

§  Tejas, Antyodaya and Humsafar trains launched.

§  Double decker UDAY rake ready for service.

§  Deen Dayalu and Anubhuti coaches with modern features.

§  Glass top “Vistadome” coaches on select routes so that tourists can view beautiful scenic routes.

14.  Enhancing Passenger Services

§  407 new train services introduced in last 4 years.

§  1.37 Lakh services to meet festival demand in last 4 years

§ 22 new trains and 44 extensions through better utilization of rolling stock, seating of assets and use of lie over period.Third Party Performance Checking: 100 mystery shoppers to monitor passenger amenities, catering, clenliness and punctiality.

§  261 and 292 lifts and escalators (2014-2018) build compared to 97 and 199 lifts and escalators till March 2014.

15.  Digital India, Digital Rail

§  High Speed Wi-Fi services at more than 675 stations. All stations to have Wi-FI. Will benefit youth, women, villagers, farmers in nearby locations.

§  9100 Point of Sale (POS) machines installed for cashless transactions.

§  “No Bill, Free Food”: POS machines to implement compulsory billing.

§  Capacity of e-ticketing increased from 2000 tickets per minute in 2014 to estimated 20,000 tickets per minute in 2018.

§  Service charge on credit card and debit cards for purchasing tickets at booking counters removed.

§  Passenger grievances resolved in real time via Social Media.

 16.  Catering

§  16 base kitchens already upgraded in 2017-18.

§  Use of Artificial Intelligence  to monitor food production in base kitchens for improving quality and hygiene.

§  E-Catering started at 314 stations and 100 more planned. More than 7000 meals/day.

§  Compulsory printing of MRP on all food items started on more than 300 trains.

§  Optional catering introduced on 32 Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto and Gatiman trains.

§  1689 water vending machines installed at 600 stations.

17.  Swachhata Hi Seva

§  Integrated Mechanized Cleaning already provided at 488 stations. All suburban and major stations to have mechanized cleaning by March 2019.

§  Mechanized Laundries for improving quality of washed linen: 33 setup in 2014-18 versus 26 in 2009-14. 100% Mechanized laundries for improving quality of wahed linen by December, 2019.

§  Bio-Toilets installed: 1,17,164 in 2014-18 versus 9587 in 2004-14.

§  Affordable sanitary pad dispensing machines at major stations by December 2018.

18. Reform to Transform: Transparency and          Accountability

§  General Conditions of Contracts for Services Introduced: Easy registration process for service contractors to promote competitiveness and save costs.

§  Change in Procurement Practices: 100% E-procurement through single web portal. Almost 17 lakhs tenders floated through e-procurement portal.

§  4 times increase in total number of vendors registered on IREPS portal from 19,867 in 2014 to 81,127 in 2018.

§  Mandatory procurement of common use goods/services through GeM (Government E-market place).

19.  Encouraging Competition by Increasing Vendors and Reducing Cost

§  Railways to pay contractors on a “First In First Out” system.

§  Letter of Credit to be provided to all suppliers and contractors to help them get working capital.

§  Receipt notes, suppliers bill, receipted challans across railways digitized. Covers approximately Rs. 50,000 crore worth of receipt notes and receipt challans.

20.  Empowering Field Officers/Delegation of Powers

§  Powers of GMs to approve works fully delegated upto maximum limit.

§  Powers for service contracts delegated to DRMs to enable faster processing and decision making.

§  De-centralization of vendor approvals to Pus to empower them to develop and manage their own resources.

21. Enhancing Employee Welfare

§  Improving running rooms for staff like loco pilots, guards, TTEs.

§  Improving staff colonies and work places.

§  Upgradation of barracks of Railway Protection Force.

§  Preventive check up of all employees every year (for RPF staff, twice a year).

22.  Building a Skilled Work Force:

          India’s First National Rail & Transportation

         University in Vadodara.

§  Create a resource pool of skilled manpower

§  Enhance productivity and promote “Make in India”

§  Set Indian Railways on the path of modernization.

§ Will start two courses: BBA (Transportation management) and BSc (Transportation Tech) in August 2018.

§  Post Graduate Course likely to commence from 2019.

§  Latest Pedagogy and technology applications to improve on the job performance and productivity.