* Electrification to be undertaken over 6,500 km at an allocation of Rs.8,000 crore during 12th Plan.

* Conversion from DC to AC power supply completed in Western Railway corridor of Mumbai suburban rail system; conversion of Central Railway corridor to be completed in 2012-13.

* Elevated corridor from Churchgate to Virar in Mumbai being firmed up.

* Government should consider dividend payback to railways.

* Thirty-one projects over 5,000 km being implemented with state govenments sharing costs.

* Capacity augmentation to get Rs.4,410 crore during 2012-13.

* Eighty-five new line projects to be taken up during 2012-13.

* One hundred and fourteen new line surveys to be undertaken during 2012-13.

* New line projects to get Rs.6,870 crore in 2012-13.

* Gauge conversion to be undertaken over 800 km with an allocation of Rs.1,950 crore.

* Focus during next five years on five areas: tracks, bridges, signalling, rolling stock and stations.

* Signalling to be improved over 19,000 km.

* Investment of Rs.1.70 lakh crore on rolling stock in next five years.

* Attempt to increase train speeds to 160 kmph; journey time from New Delhi to Kolkata can be brought down to 14 hours from 17 hours.

* Improvements to railway stations can provide employment to 50,000 people.

* Outlay of Rs.60,100 crore during 2012-13, the highest ever.

* Railways will require Rs.14 lakh crore in the next 10 years for modernisation.

* Aim to bring down operating ratio from 90 percent to 84.9 percent in 2012-13 and to 72 percent by 2016-17.

* Time has come for formulating national policy for railways on the lines of that for defence and external affairs.

* Railways should grow at 10 percent annually for sustained GDP growth.

* Railways to invest Rs.7.35 lakh crore during 12th Five Year Plan period (2012-17), a quantum jump from the Rs.1.92 lakh crore invested in previous plan period.

* Railways must attract 10 percent of the Rs.20 lakh crore government expects to spend on infrastructure during 12th Plan.

* Railways expect gross budgetary support of Rs.2.5 lakh crore during 12th Plan.

* Collective challenge to formulate viable funding mechanism for modernisation.

* Railways should contribute 2 percent of GDP from the present 1 percent.

* Stress on strengthening safety. Has to be be benchmarked with the best in the world.

* Target of reducing accidents from 0.55 to 0.17 has been met.

* Special purpose vehicle to be set up on safety protocols.

* Independent railway safety authority to be set up as statutory safety body.

* Investment of Rs.5.60 lakh crore required for modernisation.

New Delhi, Feb 25 (IANS) More highlights from Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee’s budget presented in the Lok Sabha Friday.

* Earnings for 2010-11 set to exceed Rs.1 lakh crore.

* Integrated suburban network to be set up in Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad and other cities; suburban system of Hyderabad to be strengthened.

* Concession for physically handicapped and gallantry award winners for travel in Rajdhani and Shatabdi expresses.

* 50 percent concession for mediapersons with families to be increased from once to twice a year.

* Mumbai suburban system’s EMU coaches to be increased from nine to 12.

* Multi-purpose smart card to be introduced for all-India travel.

* New Durantos to be run on Allahabad-Mumbai, Pune-Ahmedabad, Sealdah-Puri, Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam, Madurai-Chennai routes.

* Working expenditure during 2011-12 estimated at Rs.87,000 crore

* Passing through a difficult phase; 97 percent increase in expenditure due to implementation of Sixth Pay Commission report.

* Loss of Rs.3,500 crore in 2010-11.

* Ten-year backlog of 1.75 lakh jobs being addressed; 16,000 ex-servicemen to be given jobs in railways.

* Airport-like trolleys to be provided at more stations.

* Railways to set up a sports cadre.

* Train to run to Bangladesh to showcase Indian culture.

* Upgraded class of air conditioned travel to be introduced shortly.

* Anti-collision device, successful in North West Frontier Railway, to be extended to three more zonal railways.

* Railways always been a soft target but law and order a state subject. If railways are blocked in one region, this has a snowballing effect in other parts of the country.

* Will add 180 km of rail lines in 2011-12.

* All-India security helpline set up.

* To adopt modern technology through centres of academic excellence.

* Work started on two dedicated freight corridors.

* Work on upgrading 442 stations to be completed by March 31.

* Safety first priority; accident rate has come down.

* Decision to start pilot projects to give shelter to homeless people.

* Outlay of Rs.57,630 crore for 2011-12, the highest investment in one year.

* Rs.10,000 crore to be raised through railway bonds.

* Pradhan Mantri Rail Vikas Yojna to be launched.

* Industrial park to be set up in Nandigram, West Bengal.

* Fund to be created for socially desirable projects.

* First coach from Rae Bareli factory in next three months.

* Work on wagon factory in Orissa to begin after land is acquired.

* Railways to set up factory in Jammu and Kashmir.

* To set up Metro coach factory at Singur, West Bengal.

* Manipur to be soon connected to railway network.

* Centre for excellence in software to be set up at Darjeeling.

* Combines strong economic focus along with inclusion.

* Develop business-oriented policies to aid industry.

* Happy to announce through 85 PPP proposals received; set up single-window system to take these forward.

* Decide to set-up rail-based industries.