As the Union Cabinet's prior permission was mandatory for railway projects, a number of such projects were getting delayed for commercial utilisation of railway land, Union Railways Minister Mukul Roy has said.
 
 Roy said that construction of world-class stations, multifunctional stations and the Eastern Freight Corridor are getting delayed. Various projects under PPP models are also getting stuck as the Railways Department need prior permission from the Union Cabinet for commercial utilisation of railway land. 
 
 Seeking a solution to the problem, Roy and Railway Board Chairman Vinay Mittal had met Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee three days ago. The Finance Secretary and the Secretary (Expenditure) of the Finance Ministry were also present in the meeting.
 
 In March 2011, the Cabinet secretariat had issued a circular which mandated cabinet clearance to lease out any government-owned land.