- Monday, February 24, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who took over in July following a mega cabinet reshuffle by prime minister Narendra Modi, decided to ignore the VIP protocol to undertake the Jan Ashirwad Yatra (tour to receive people’s blessings) to Odisha, the state he represents at the Rajya Sabha, the upper chamber of the Indian parliament.
The Jan Ashirwad Yatras were launched by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) earlier this week at different corners of the country. Through them, the saffron party planned to introduce the newly inducted ministers in Modi’s cabinet to the people since the prime minister could not do it due to the opposition’s protest over issues like the Pegasus snooping controversy.
କୋରାପୁଟ ଅଞ୍ଚଳରେ ରେଳବାଇ ପ୍ରକଳ୍ପ ଗୁଡ଼ିକର ନିର୍ମାଣ କାର୍ଯ୍ୟ ଅଗ୍ରଗତି ସମ୍ବନ୍ଧରେ ଟ୍ରେନ ରେ ପୂର୍ବତଟ ରେଳପଥ ର ମହାପ୍ରବନ୍ଧକ, ମଣ୍ଡଳ ରେଳବାଇ ପ୍ରବନ୍ଧକ, ଅନ୍ୟାନ ଅଧିକାରୀ ଓ ସ୍ଥାନୀୟ ଅଞ୍ଚଳର ଅନୁଭବୀ ଅଭିଜ୍ଞ ବ୍ୟକ୍ତି ମାନଙ୍କ ସହିତ ଆଲୋଚନା କଲି pic.twitter.com/kfw3IcDewe
— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) August 19, 2021
[In the tweet, Indian railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw (in blue) speaks with a railways official onboard a train to Odisha]
During his travel, Vaishnaw, a former Indian Administrative Officer who has worked in Odisha in various capacities, interacted with passengers who were surprised to see the cabinet minister among them. Vaishnaw is also India’s information technology and communications minister.
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Vaishnaw, 51, tried to know the passengers’ opinions about amenities on Indian Railways and whether the protocols of Swachh Bharat (cleaner India) were being followed. He also spoke with young people to understand their view for a ‘new India’.
The fact that Vaishnaw is fluent in Odia made the passengers of the Odisha-bound train happy.
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“I’ve come back to travel on trains possibly after a gap of about five years, but it has been my lifelong mode of transport,” he told the media.
“It is a different feeling altogether, and it feels so good to be on India’s lifeline where you are working on a mission. It brings a bigger sense of responsibility and tells you how important the Rail feedback is,” he said when asked about seeking feedback from fellow passengers.
He said the passengers have seen and appreciated the improvements seen in the Indian Railways after Modi came to power.
“What the consumers told me is that they are happy to see the Railways being more cleaner and efforts being made to make it an ‘experience mode of travel’. This has happened because of the vision of the prime minister, but we have miles to go before we can rest; the potential of the Indian Railways in nation-building is immense,” he said.
