Railways spent 80 pc of gross budgetary support in first three quarters of current fiscal
New Delhi (PTI): The Indian Railways has spent 80.54 per cent, which is Rs 2,03,138 crore of the total gross budgetary support (GBS) of Rs 2,52,200 crore, as of the end of December 2025, the ministry said on Monday.
"This represents a 6.54 per cent increase in GBS utilisation compared to the same period last year (December 2024). The expenditure has primarily focused on safety measures, capacity enhancement, infrastructure modernisation and passenger amenities," it added in a press note.
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Officials said that Indian Railways is delivering faster, safer and world-class rail travel at an affordable cost across India by transforming itself into a future-ready organisation aligned with the vision of a modern and connected nation.
Demonstrating this focused approach, the Indian Railways has maintained a strong trend in the utilisation of allocated GBS outlays for 2025-26, they added.
The ministry's press note said 84 per cent of the allocated funds have been utilised in the category of safety-related works.
According to the ministry, out of Rs 1,09,238 crore allocated for capacity augmentation, Rs 76,048 crore (69 per cent) has been spent.
"Customer amenities have seen 80 per cent utilisation, with expenditure amounting to Rs 9,575 crore till December 2025," it added.
Outlining the results of consistent capital expenditure (CAPEX) over the last decade, the ministry said these efforts have resulted in the launch of 164 Vande Bharat train services, 30 Amrit Bharat train services, implementation of the Kavach automatic train protection system, over 99 per cent electrification of the broad-gauge network and extensive works covering new lines, gauge conversion, track doubling, traffic facilities, investments in PSUs and metropolitan transport systems.
"These initiatives have significantly improved speed, safety and passenger comfort, while keeping rail travel affordable. With the Vande Bharat Sleeper train set for inauguration shortly, the Indian Railways is poised to transform long-distance rail travel," the press note said.
"These trends indicate that the Ministry of Railways' GBS expenditure plan is on track, with infrastructural works being executed expeditiously. They also suggest that the targets for FY 2025-26 are likely to be fully achieved," it added.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
