Chariots have become a convenient vehicle for politicians of all hues to spread their messages the very mention of the word conjures up visions of Lord Krishna and Arjun and the famous lines of Gita carry out your duties without bothering about results because, if you are sincere enough, results will follow. Therefore, maintaining the tradition, Laloo-ji has placed before us his dream budget aimed at relieving the sufferings of those who patronize the railways because they do not have any alternative. This is not to belittle the brains behind the beautiful decisions of reducing fares in AC 1^st class and AC 2-tier class and simultaneously introducing once-a-week travel in subsidized AC 3-tier class, fondly nicknamed the chariot of the poor. On the face of it, these appear to be traveler friendly but, most of the travelers in the first two categories avail the facility free in any case because a majority of them are Government officers and their families or MPs and their kith, kin and chamchas none of them shell out money from their pockets. Hence, the amount of revenue loss to the railways on account of such reduced fares will be difficult to establish with any degree of certainty.

The largesse meted out by the Minister to his home state is but natural. All Ministers do it since they have to keep their followers happy. Hence, the concessions to farmers and milkmen come as no surprise. It has to be spelt out what documents one should carry to avail these concessions.

As to the modernization of the railways and forward looking policies, instead of setting up ATMs, cyber cafes and ticket vending machines at railway stations, it would have been more traveler friendly if the latches in the toilets were functional, if all the windows of the compartment could be kept closed in winter and in the monsoons, if the electric fans were serviceable, if water was available in the taps, if the external surface of the coaches were cleaned on a regular basis, if the encroachment of beggars and unauthorized vendors were stopped, and of course, if the trains were on schedule and safety of women passengers was guaranteed.

We are staunch believers in the philosophy what cant be cured must be endured. Until Laloo-ji and his administration give serious thought to evolve cures for the illness that plague the railways, we have to endure such meaningless budgets.