Copyright © HT Digital Streams Limited All rights reserved. Railways spent ₹1.6 trillion—more than 65% of its ₹2.52 trillion 2025-2026 budget—in the first seven months, marking its highest ever mid-year utilization. (Mint) Summary Indian Railways has already exhausted more than 65% of its record budget allocation of ₹2.52 trillion in the first seven months – the highest mid-year utilization ever achieved by the national carrier. Indian Railways may seek additional funds from the Center to sustain its spending on rail network expansion, the first instance in many years where it will not only use up its entire budget funds before the end of a financial year, but also seek additional resources to complete capital projects. In 2025-26, having already exhausted ₹1.6 trillion, Railways was spending more than 65% of its record budget allocation of ₹2.52 trillion in the first seven months. This is the highest mid-year utilization the national carrier has ever achieved, according to two people close to the development. Although its 2024-25 capital expenditure was the same as 2025-26 at ₹2.52 trillion, it spent about ₹1.25 trillion, or 50%, during the same period. At this rate, it will use up its entire budget funds well before the end of the fiscal year, necessitating additional resources under the demand allocation mechanism during the final quarter, the first person said. Additional support may be required to help production of more Vande Bharat trains, work on high-speed railways, speed up Kavach installation and strengthen the signaling system. A large part could also go towards capacity augmentation, including network expansion and decongestion efforts, to improve speed and last-mile connectivity. Queries sent to the Ministry of Railways remained unanswered till press time. Kavach and Vande Bharat “This excessively high spending in the first half of the financial year is unusual. In the absence of sufficient data in the public domain, it is difficult to analyze. However, capital-intensive programs such as the indigenously developed automatic train protection system Kavach and Vande Bharat trains reaching the execution stage could be one of the reasons for the spending stage,” said. Kumar Jain, sector expert and former engineering board member at Indian Railways. “Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed corridor is also now in full swing, adding to the increased expenditure. So far, for railways, the major expenditure is on rolling stock and Kavach installation. The rest of the expenditure seems to be following the usual pattern with minimal growth,” he added. The national carrier utilized ₹1,42,487 crore, or 56.5%, of the total budgetary allowances within the first six months, according to the official data of the railway ministry. Network expansion Most of the spending went to projects that increase network capacity, such as new railway lines, track doubling, gauge conversion, electrification and the development of metropolitan transport. Here, in the first six months, Railways spent a total of ₹49,001 crore, 45% of the annual budget for this segment. The next highest railway expenditure of ₹25,948 crore was spent on procurement and manufacturing of modern locomotives, coaches (including Vande Bharat trains) and wagons. This represents 46% of the allocated budget for rolling stock. Safety is also a focus area, where Railways spent ₹22,286 crore, 56% of the allocation, during the period. Funds were used for track renewals, road bridges, level crossings and the expansion of Kavach. An amount of ₹5,863 crore, 49% of the allocation, was spent on improving consumer amenities—modernizing stations, improving sanitation facilities and upgrading waiting areas. In other categories, such as inventory, research, computerization and miscellaneous capital investment, the ministry spent ₹2,034 crore, which amounts to 60% of its annual outlay. Get all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download the Mint News app to get daily market updates. more topics #Indian Railways Read next story
Indian Railways is on a spending spree. It can ask the Center for more money.
