Railway Minister Mukul Roy has said that the safety and security of passengers will continue to be the highest priority of Indian Railways. Mr. Roy was addressing the 57th Annual Railway National Awards Function 2012 in New Delhi today. He said that his Ministry will make efforts to achieve zero tolerance on safety issues. The Vision 2020 document envisages elimination of accidents in next ten years on Indian Railways. The Railway Minister said, all necessary safety measures would be implemented and all the resources required for this purpose, would be mobilized and deployed.

Mr. Roy assured that national projects like Railway network in Jammu and Kashmir and North Eastern region, will further help in national integration and bring the far-flung areas into the mainstream of development. He said that Indian Railways is passing through a challenging period on the resources front due to various factors and additional resources are required for expansion, growth, safety and providing better passenger amenities. Mr. Roy emphasised on social commitment and to make the Railway profitable, efficient, safe and corruption free.

Both the Ministers of State for Railways, K.H. Muniappa and Bharat Sing Solanki also spoke on the occasion. The Railway Minister presented national awards for outstanding services to 343 Railway personnel and 19 Shields were given to different zones.