Dysfunction junction: India on a slow train to the future

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A ‘Long Read’ from Bloomberg on Indian Railways, still one of the most infuriating, admirable and downright unworkable organisations that human history has ever seen. “Most nations have an annual budget for government spending. India has two. One for Indian Railways and one for everything else.” Even more extraordinary, perhaps, is the unusual fact that freight effectively subsidises passenger operations – it brings in something like three-quarters of IR’s annul budget, and yet accounts for just a quarter of the trains. Interesting for train spotters, freight geeks and India-philes alike.