My Budget by the people, for people: Mamata

New Delhi, July, 3 : Amidst much speculation and expectations, Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee will present her third Railway Budget after a nine-year break on Friday.

Minutes before leaving for the Lok Sabha to present the Rail Budget, Mamata said, “The Budget will be of the people, by the people and for the people.”

Shifting from the claims of high surplus by her predecessor Lalu Prasad, Mamata has maintained from the day she assumed charge that her focus will be on improving passenger amenities and rationalisation of services such as Tatkal (instant ticketing) service.

And though she has refused to shed any light on the nature of the Budget, it is expected to be pro-people without any hike in fares, new trains, rehauling of the Tatkal scheme and speeding up of the freight-corridor project.

"I am not against the commercialisation of the Railways but it must be with a human face," Banerjee was quoted by news agencies.

If the Budget is overly pro-people, it is going to be a tightrope walk for Mamata as she also has to maintain revenue growth amidst the burden of slowdown, declining freight earnings and the burden of the higher salary outgo following the Six Pay Commission recommendations.

The buzz is that passenger amenities will figure high in the Budget platter with mention of affordable, economic food being available at key stations across the country.

Mamata is likely to favour more public-private partnerships to boost growth in Railway infrastructure. Pending projects will also receive special attention.