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Railway Budget has been separated by General budget based on the Acworth Committee recommendation on 1921.
The Government has decided to merge Rail Budget with the Union Budget from budget year 2017-18. The merger of Railway Budget with General Budget is based on the recommendations of the Committee headed by Shri Bibek Debroy
The salient features of merger and the benefits likely to accrue therefrom are broadly given below:
- Ministry of Railways will continue to function as a departmentally run commercial undertaking;
- Railways will get exemption from payment of dividend to General Revenues and its Capital-at-charge would stand wiped off
- Ministry of Finance will provide Gross Budgetary Support to Ministry of Railways towards meeting part of its capital expenditure;
- Railways may continue to raise resources from market through Extra-Budgetary Resources as at present to finance its capital expenditure;
- The presentation of a unified budget will help present a holistic picture of the financial position of the Government;
- Merger of Rail Budget with Union Budget would facilitate multi modal transport planning between highways, railways and inland waterways.
