Thiruvananthapuram, Friday 25 February 2011: The railway budget, presented by Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee in the parliament today, has evoked mixed reactions in Kerala with state Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan terming it as disappointment.

While ruling LDF said the budget failed to do justice to Kerala by not allowing the long-pending demand for separate railway zone, the opposition party UDF termed the budget allocations a greater achievement for the state. Reacting to the budget, Achuthanandan said the rail budget was a total disappointment.

“Even the projects, declared in the last budget, have not been implemented yet. There is no sincerity in implementing the Palakkad Coach Factory and wagon manufacturing unit in Cherthala announced in the last budget, “He said.” If the work of coach factory had begun on time, it could have been commissioned by now,” he said.

State Sports Minister in charge of Railways, M Vijayakumar said Kerala did not get the deserved projects in the budget. “The rail budget has shown injustice to Kerala,”.

He also alleged that some states got a plenty of projects but Kerala did not get deserved railway allocations, he said. However, Opposition leader Oommen Chandy hailed the budget as a great achievement for the state.

“Kerala has got 12 trains of the total 83 announced and it is a greater achievement. Malabar region has got greater consideration. The coming up of Palakkad Coach Factory and wagon manufacturing unit in Cherthala will pave way for large scale development in the region,” Chandy said.

Though not completely satisfied with the budget, CPM leader A Sampath MP said he was welcoming the allotment of railway yard at Nemom and goods yard at Kazhakuttam. Though there were a pleathora of announcements, the budget had not earmarked adequate funds for majority of them, CPM MP P Karunakaran said.

Expressing happiness over the new announcements for Kerala, Congress MP Kodikkunnil Suresh said there was no base for the allegations that Kerala had been neglected in the rail budget.

(PTI)