New Delhi, Commuters will face an expensive start to 2015 with
train fares set to go up. The next Rail Budget to be presented early next year
could contain a proposal for raising fares to pass on the burden of rising
power cost to passengers.
The fuel adjustment
component-linked tariff revision due in December will be effected in the Rail
Budget in February and there is a need for upward revision as energy cost has
gone up by over 4 per cent in the recent months, said a senior Railway Ministry
official.
According to Railways’
announced policy, fare and freight revision linked to fuel and energy cost are
being done twice a year. The last revision was done in June wherein passenger
fares were revised by 4.2 per cent and freight rates by 1.4 per cent.
Hinting at a possible
fare hike, new Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu had said at a recent event that
“some burden has to be shared by people.”
Asked about the
possibility of raising train fares to meet the growing expenses in Railways,
Prabhu, known for his pro-reform approach, did not rule out the possibility
saying “passenger service should be improved before increasing the fares.
Safety cannot be compromised. There is a need for big investment. Some burden
has to be shared by people.”
Expressing serious
concern over the Railways’ financial health, Prabhu had said it is “too close
for comfort” and highlighted the urgent need for massive investment to meet the
safety requirement and upgrading in the rail infrastructure.
“Railways requires big
investment. There is no fund for investment. There is requirement of Rs 6 lakh
crore to Rs 8 lakh crore for completion of announced projects,” he had said.
The minister, who is
also meeting MPs in batches to make himself aware of their demands and
aspirations before the Rail Budget, said to meet these demands, the requirement
is about Rs 20,000 crore.
Prabhu, after assuming
charge, is learnt to have taken a series of steps to bring the national
transporter reeling under massive fund crunch back on the track.
While the
cross-subsidisation in passenger sector is hovering around Rs 26,000 crore,
there is a fall in passenger bookings too. Passenger bookings have come down
during April-November by 1.43 per cent as compared to the corresponding period
last year.
The total number of
passenger tickets booked during this period were 5581.33 million compared to
5662.54 million in the same period last year, according to Railway Ministry
data. (Source- www.newsroompost.com)
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