Railway minister Lalu Prasad presented the last budget of his tenure, in an attempt at a bold image makeover from his earlier track record in Bihar, which declined drastically on all parameters under his rule. He has been credited with scripting a turnaround story for the railways, and bringing the giant enterprise back from the brink. Not everyone agrees, though. Many feel he merely built upon what began under his predecessor, the current Bihar chief minister and arch rival Nitish Kumar, and was helped on by a buoyant economy. Others have even accused him of puffing up figures. But all agree that his stint was eventful, which saw many important initiatives.
Lalu discusses his performance in an exclusive conversation with HNN.
What do you count as your most important achievement?
I focused on bringing fares down and improving passenger amenities. But I did not discriminate among passengers. Everyone benefited, not just the poor. Before I took over, the practice was to flog upper-class passengers. I stopped that. After all, they are also citizens like you and me. So, while they were not punished for not being rich, poor got huge relief. I launched air-conditioned Garib Raths for them, affording them the luxury that they could only dream of.
I have the satisfaction of proving my detractors wrong. ‘Log mujhe gali dete the... ab kahan hain sab? Sabko chup kara diya maine apne kaam se’. You mentioned that passenger amenities were also your priority. But there is a huge clamour against the sharp decline in the quality of food served to passengers.
I don’t deny that, though the problem is broadly in the northern part. What has happened is that P Chidambaram as finance minister imposed service tax on railway caterers. And since we would not allow them to increase prices, contractors could make profit only at the cost of quality and quantity. Some of them even withdrew from the business. But now I have suggested a cut on frills like ‘soup/woup’ and to ensure there is no compromise on the essentials. ‘Sada do lekin solid ho’, that is the instruction.
What about hygiene, the lack of which is a major deterrent to many who would like to travel by rail?
Yes, that is a problem. I will not deny that. But passengers are also to be blamed. We took steps to improve the situation, but a lot remains be done. We have also done a lot to ensure the security of passengers —from CCTVs and luggage scanners to more cops on trains and sniffer dogs.
You are partial towards Bihar.
People who say such things don’t understand that Bihar was neglected all these years in terms of central projects. Railway projects that have come up there can be catalysts for development. Or else, the entire state will be in the grip of Naxals. Who will want this? And my support for Bihar is not at the cost of any other state.
There have been other railway ministers before you from Bihar.
I would not like to comment on what they did to help the state. There are records. But the role of Nitish Kumar as chief minister has been very negative. He has been a huge obstructionist and has created problems that have delayed projects. I have to get the Centre to bring in a special law to help railways get around the problems he created in acquisition of land.
Are you going to miss the railways? Will you like to continue in the same ministry after the polls?
Who knows what is going to happen? I am hopeful of UPA’s return to power, but there is no guarantee I will be in the same department. In any case, I am not hung up on the railways. I will miss the people with whom I worked. I will miss the huge workforce who supported me. But I have the satisfaction that I have proved all my rivals wrong, who dismissed me as a non-performer.
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