Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted the massive transformation taking place across Indian Railways, saying railway capital expenditure has surged from nearly ₹66,000 crore a few years ago to ₹2.72 lakh crore in the last financial year. Vaishnaw said India has added 36,000 kilometres of railway tracks over the last decade and electrified nearly 49,000 kilometres — more than the entire rail network of Germany. He also compared the expansion to adding “six Switzerlands” worth of railway tracks. The minister stressed that railway project execution has accelerated dramatically, with most of the annual capex being utilised even before March-end. Production of wagons and locomotives has also increased significantly as India pushes ahead with one of the world’s biggest rail infrastructure expansions.