IR set to surpass revenue target in 2023-24

Indian Railways (IR) plans on surpassing the revenue target of Rs 1.5 trillion in 2023-24, following the recent milestone of earning Rs 1 trillion from freight loading. Even though the overall revenues have increased by 6.5 per cent during 2023-24, IR falls short of the annual growth target of over 9 per cent set for 2023-24. However, Ministry of Railways remain optimistic about achieving the annual target, as economic activity is expected to pick up post-monsoon, resulting in increased goods loading. In 2023-24, upto October 13, 2023, passenger revenue reached Rs 431.01 billion. The introduction of trains like Vande Bharat has contributed to a 7 per cent increase in earnings from reserved passengers, amounting to Rs 318.75 billion However, there has been a 4.7 per cent decrease in the number of passengers, totaling 0.47 billion. This indicates that the revenue per passenger has increased. Meanwhile, earnings from the unreserved category have also seen a positive growth of 3.8 per cent, reaching Rs 113.26 billion. The number of passengers in the unreserved category has increased by 12 per cent.