New Delhi, February 1: The government on Wednesday said that a capital outlay of Rs 2.4 lakh crore has been provided for railways, which is highest-ever allocation since 2013-14.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the capital outlay was fixed for 2023-24. The Economic Survey on January 31 has said that the next 10 years will see a very high level of capital expenditure in the railway sector as capacity growth has to be accelerated, so that by 2030 it is ahead of demand. Budget 2023: Nirmala Sitharaman, Sixth Finance Minister to Present Budget Five Times in a Row.

Up to 2014, capex on railway was barely Rs 45,980 crore per annum and consequently, the railway was charecterised by high levels of inefficiency and highly congested routes unable to meet the growing demand. Budget 2023-24 Hopes To Build on Foundation of Previous Budget, Blue Print for India@100, Says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

As more projects are taken on hand and several sources of capital funding are developed, capex will increase further in coming years and the railway system will actually emerge as an engine of national growth.