NEW DELHI: BJP senior leader Ashwini Vaishnaw said that Indian Railways has started setting an example in its services, and in the next five years, it will complete lots of work on railway infrastructure, modernisation and service enhancement.
His remarks came after assuming charge as the Union Minister for Railway, and Information and Broadcasting.
“PM has an emotional connection with the railways. He has entrusted me the responsibility to further his transformative vision to ensure that railways remain an affordable and convenient mode of transport,” he said.
Vaishnaw, a former IAS officer of the 1994 batch, has handled important portfolios for over 15 years and was particularly known for his contribution to the public-private partnership (PPP) framework in infrastructure. He emerged as one of the most successful railway ministers for several initiatives; one of them is the introduction of 98 semi-high-speed Vande Bharat trains.
Vaishnaw who continues to hold the key portfolios of Railways and Electronics and Information Technology, assumed charge as Information and Broadcasting minister in the presence of senior officials, including I&B secretary Sanjay Jaju.
The minister’s first tenure in the railways is credited with bringing the Vande Bharat-like train into reality, progress on Kavach, infrastructure development like Adarsh and world-class railways stations and electrification. In the previous Cabinet, the I&B Ministry was with Anurag Singh Thakur.