Infra visions in manifestos

Elections have never been won or lost solely based on voters reading manifestos! But it is a fact that think-tanks and policy cells of various political parties spend considerable time drafting their manifestos and getting them cleared by their political bosses.

The recent skirmish between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress party on certain specific items in the Congress manifesto confirms that manifestos have not completely lost their relevance.

So, here are some of the key infrastructure highlights from the manifestos of the BJP, Congress, CPI(M), DMK and TMC.

It is not surprising that the railways has taken centre stage in the manifesto of the BJP, lending credence to the increasing belief that the railways is set to be of greater significance in the next five years than roads. The BJP talks of constructing 5,000-plus km of new tracks every year, expanding the Kavach safety systems, redeveloping over 130-plus railway stations, and introducing rapid rail inter-city train services like DelhiMeerut. Initiating metro rail projects in 20-plus cities is high on the agenda, as is the propagation of user-friendly super apps. The Congress party's only contribution to the railway discussion is insisting on safety and modernising outdated infrastructure. In the safety aspect, it is joined by the DMK and TMC. Rather surprisingly, both the DMK and TMC want the re-introduction of a separate Rail Budget like old times! The BJP appears to have no fresh ideas on roads other than building 15,000 km of access-controlled highways. There is no mention of the much-anticipated GPS-based tolling system. The makings of a more investor-friendly Build Operate Transfer format also does not find mention. The Congress wants a new formula for calculating road tolls, though the specifics are left unsaid. Road safety is only alluded to in the BJP manifesto.