Privatisation of Railways has gathered momentum with Union Railway Minister asking bureaucrats to prepare a plan for introducing around 150 new routes covered by trains like Duronto, Tejas and Rajdhani Express. They will be run by private operators. A call on this has been taken at a high-level meeting held on December 8-9.

Around 30 private trains are likely to run from Mumbai on both central and western Railways. This will be on the lines of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad and Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express trains, which will soon be operated by IRCTC.

Private operators will decide fares and the food that will be served on-board. The companies will also arrange concierge services and pick up luggage from passengers’ homes. The trains are expected to be punctual – they will be given priority clearance in order to ensure there is little delay.

This is happening for the first time in the country and the bidding process will take time. However, this system is in place all over the world. The entire process will be completed in two parts, the first being Request for Qualification, where in the bidding process private bidders will qualify. In the second step, there will be Request for Proposal. The entire process will take six months. The details of revenue generation and routes will be decided during the RFP.