Prabhu suggests Railway durbars

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Sunday suggested that top railway officials "open a durbar (mass contact programme)" once in a month to listen to the problems being faced by millions of its passengers.

Speaking after laying the foundation stone for constructing a new railway station here, Prabhu said solving the problems of passengers at the railway station itself will help railway boost its image.

"One thing I can suggest to the General Managers and Divisional Railway Managers... at least once in a month, you can open a durbar (mass contact programme) here to understand people's problem.

"It is not only devolution of power, it is also devolution of responsibility. If we take people into confidence, they themselves will become our brand ambassadors," Prabhu said.

He also said DRMs and GM should use social media to find the people's aspirations and find local solutions for local problems. Earlier, talking to reporters at Kochi, Prabhu said there was no move to privatise the Indian Railways.