Just an academic discussion aimed at better understanding of the subject matter...
Anyone. They will pick profitable routes or one which are very busy. But with govt caring for safety and providing maintenance free...
"They will pick profitable routes or one which are very busy" - Isn't that good? We can have (track traffic permitting) multiple trains on busy routes thereby reducing waiting lists...
"govt caring for safety and providing maintenance" - Can't they give out contracts for maintenance and track addition/expansion like the Highway BOT toll model?
oh yes, they are serious players, no doubt. What I doubt is the public utility of the privatization drive. It may reduce the movement of people and goods, which is a building brick of our economy.
Maybe I was misunderstood. What I was actually wondering was why will private players want to compete in a highly subsidized business... won't they suffer similar fates to private sector players in other sectors like electricity distribution, electricity generation, Oil marketing and on lower level the municipal waste disposal sector, all of which have been opened up but were hampered due to a subsidized competitor (only banking and telecom seem to be the exceptions so far but they were not subsidized in the traditional sense)... cross-subsidization has been the bane of the Indian Railways...