Indian Railways is set to see a record capital expenditure (CAPEX) of Rs 2.6 trillion in the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24). As you know, the railway budget has been merged with the Union Budget, this announcement in the Budget on February 1 would give a push to the massive infrastructure expansion lined up, and the government’s share would contribute around Rs 2.4 trillion to this — the highest ever.
“This year is the highest ever outlay in the history of Railways — almost nine times the outlay made in 2013-14,’ the finance minister said. The Railways is targeting an operating ratio of 98.45 percent for the fiscal year, compared to a revised ratio of 98.22 percent in FY23. This means the Railways aims to spend about Rs 98.45 for every Rs 100 it earns in FY24 as part of the Railway Budget 2023. During the last fiscal year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rs 1.4 trillion for the rail sector.
Stocks to watch out for
- Container Corporation of India: CONCOR is engaged in transporting and handling containers. The company has also expanded to cover management of Ports, air cargo complexes, and establishing cold-chain.
- Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation Ltd: IRCTC provides ticketing, catering, and tourism services for the Indian Railways.
- Rail Vikas Nigam: RVNL is an Indian public sector undertaking that works as the construction arm of the Ministry of Railways for project implementation and transportation infrastructure development.
- RITES Ltd: RITES is a leading player in the transport consultancy and engineering sector in India and uniquely placed in terms of diversification of services and geographical reach in various sectors such as railways, highways, urban engineering (metros) & sustainability, airports, ports, ropeways, and institutional buildings.
- BEML Ltd: BEML Limited (formerly Bharat Earth Movers Limited) is a public sector undertaking for the manufacture of Rail Coaches & Spare Parts and Mining Equipment.
- Titagarh Wagons: Titagarh Wagons Limited is engaged in shipbuilding, defense, and railway wagon manufacturing and is headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal. The company manufactures coaches for the Indian Railways, bailey bridges, and mining equipment. A subsidiary, Titagarh Marines, operates in the shipbuilding industry.
- IRCON: Ircon is a turnkey construction company specializing in railways (new railway lines, rehabilitation/conversion of existing lines, station buildings and facilities, bridges, tunnels, signaling and telecommunication, railway electrification, and wet leasing of locomotives), highways, and EHV sub-station.
- SIEMENS: SIEMENS offers products, integrated solutions for industrial applications for manufacturing industries, drives for process industries, intelligent infrastructure and buildings, efficient and clean power generation from fossil fuels and oil & gas applications, transmission and distribution of electrical energy for passenger and freight transportation, including rail vehicles, rail automation, and rail electrification systems.
Companies Snapshot
If you have a question, share it in the comments below or DM us or call us – +91 9051052222. We’ll be happy to answer it.
– Debraj Guha Thakurta & Nischay Avichal
