MoR seeks increase in financial powers to sanction railway projects

The MoR has sought an increase in financial powers to sanction railway projects in the country. A formal letter requesting the same was forwarded to the Ministry of Finance in early November 2017. As per the proposal, the MoR has asked to increase the existing threshold of seeking approval of Parliament for any new project or works from Rs 25 million to Rs 100 million, as the cost of projects has increased manyfold over the years, which has led to delays in implementation. Once approved, the MoR will be able to provide financial approvals to projects internally, thereby reducing the overall project implementation time and expediting decision-making for approvals regarding safety-related works of an urgent nature