President Droupadi Murmu, on Friday, advised the Indian Railways to attend to the needs of differently-abled persons, women and the elderly and provide them a safe and convenient travel experience.

Talking to a group of probationers of the Indian Railways at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, she said the Railways were the veritable lifeline for many people who commute to their workplaces for jobs or business on a day-to-day basis. Officers of the Indian Railways shoulder a big responsibility since they help people earn their livelihoods daily. Many people also travel for medical treatment.

The role of Railways in the life of the common man remained as significant as ever. Railways have promoted travel and the exchange of ideas and information across the country, she added.

The President said that today with India moving ahead at national and global levels, the country was witnessing greater movement of people and goods. ”This is going to increase in the future. Therefore, Indian Railways should also adopt latest digital technologies and explore new avenues to add advanced features for safer, time-saving, more convenient and high-quality transportation services.”

Observing that everybody carried memories associated with the train journey, Murmu said it was the duty of officers of the Indian Railways to ensure that people travel in comfort so that they carry fond memories. She said that Indian Railways has to play a key role in bridging the gaps and realising the dream of an inclusive and Atmanirbhar Bharat.

The President said that aligned with the vision of New and Resurgent India, the Indian Railways has taken up big developmental projects. She was happy to note that work on over 56 per cent of the length of Dedicated Freight Corridors was complete. She said that these would increase output and carrying capacity and would thus revolutionise freight transport and transform the rail network.

Freight transport cost and logistics costs would also reduce substantially through these corridors. She said programmes such as PM Gati Shakti for multi-modal connectivity, high-speed rail projects, Hyperloop-based transport, Char Dham rail project, Setu Bharatam were going to boost industrial, commercial and tourism activities in the country. This would also give a huge push to the equitable distribution of resources.