(FE)
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has given Indian Railways an ambitious target to increase the transporter’s non-fare revenue (NFR) to 15% of the total receipts in the financial year 2017-18. To meet the target, the railways will have to earn Rs 28,350 crore as NFR in the current fiscal, almost three times the level achieved in the last financial year. Though NFR increased 70% in 2016-17 to Rs 10,181 crore, its share was still just 6.17% of the total earnings. During 2015-16, NFR constituted only 3.62% of the total revenue.
The PMO has identified stepped-up advertising the of government-sponsored programmes and schemes on the railways’ websites and apps as a major source of NFR. Hoardings on the railway properties, content on demand, branding of trains and rentals from ATM outlets are among other potential NFR sources. Railway minister Suresh Prabhu had in January 2017 launched various policy initiatives to increase the transporter’s non-fare revenue.
The PMO has directed the ministry of railways and government thinktank Niti Aayog to encourage the state governments and central government departments to advertise their programmes on railways’ online assets boost the latter’s income.
