Kumar said the shortfall was mainly due to a drop in demand for rail transport from core sectors such as power, coal, cement, fertiliser, foodgrains and steel. The minister said movement of coal has come down because of the high level of coal stocks at the power stations. The demand for rakes for movement of foodgrains has also gone down from 25 to 26 rakes per day to around 10 to 12, he added. Kumar said railways were maintaining close liason with user industriesand ministries to improve the situation.

New fertiliser policy on the anvil: Government will announce the fertiliser policy after discussing the recommendations of the fertilisers pricing policy review committee, chemical and fertiliser minister Surjit Singh Barnala said. Inter-ministerial consultations and dialogue with the industry have been undertaken on the recommendations of HPC and a new fertiliser policy will be announced after conclusion of the exercise, he said. Barnala said production of fertiliser nutrients registered a growth of 13.2 per cent during Eighth Five-Year Plan. Production targets set for the previous plan period could not be attained largely due to a slowdown in the capacity build up, he said. Four fertiliser PSUs, coops submit expansion plans: Four public sector fertiliser companies and cooperatives have submitted plans to the government for setting up urea plants involving a total cost of Rs 6,728 crore, minister of of state for chemicals and fertilisers A K Patel said. The PSUs andcooperatives societies are Kribhco, Iffco, RCF and NFL, Patel said in a written reply. The proposals will be considered as per the prescribed procedures and after finalisation of demand projections for nitrogen nutrient in terminal year of Ninth Plan, he said.

Feasibility of reviving sick fertiliser units.

Service tax on CAs: Finance minister Yashwant Sinha on Friday assured the House that he would look into the five per cent service tax imposed on chartered accountants, cost accountants and company secretaries. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) and Institute of Cost and Work Accountants of India (ICWAI) have accused the government of backtracking on an earlier assurance and had even announced plans to take the government to court over the alleged "discrimination". Sinha told the House that the former minister of state for finance R K Kumar felt that the service tax should be imposed only in the area of audit. "I have taken note of itand will go back to my office and see what can be done." The finance minister added that if he gave concessions to one profession, he would have to give it to others also.