Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday said railway customers would have to pay for services they use as the Centre would refrain from indulging in “populist measures” in the next Union Budget. This will be the first time the Railway Budget, which will be presented in two months, is merged with the Union budget.

Addressing the National Conference on Accounting Reforms in Indian Railways, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries and the Railway Ministry, Jaitley said, “The first essential principle of running any establishment is that consumers must pay for the services that they receive.”

Jaitley said the plan will prioritise improving railway infrastructure, increasing revenues, outsourcing hospitality services and making commuters pay for the services they use, PTI reported. The minister said Indian Railways had been “caught in the battle where populism prevailed over performance.”

He cited the power sector as an example and said companies were in debt in the 1990s as consumers were not paying their dues. The minister said the sector survived on reforms that were introduced in 2003. Jaitley said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government was focused on transforming the railways into “a service organisation that is able to commercially sustain itself and provide world class services.”