The tussle of fare fixation between the Centre and Delhi Government is going to have an adverse impact on the 4th phase of metro expansion as the proposed expansion plan in which Rs 55,000 crore is supposed to be funded by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) may be affected said Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken on Monday.
Maken said that the total revenue of the Delhi Metro from traffic operation is only about Rs 1,765.38 crore in the financial year 2016-17 so the figure of Rs 3,000 crore annually required for five years given by the Centre is far away from the truth.
He also said soft Japanese loan constituted 60 per cent in phase I, 54.47 per cent in phase II and 48.57 per cent in phase III. “In total, Rs 36,525.77 crores has been the contributed by JBIC for Metro construction as against equity of Rs 8,682 crores of Government of ‘National Capital Territory of Delhi,” he said.
He also said that KK Sharma the then Chief Secretary, was among the members of the 4th fare fixation committee and even DMRC chief Mangu Singh was given a four-year extension by the Delhi Government. Wasn’t the Delhi CM aware of the metro fare hike,” he askedIJ
“Why KK Sharma, being a representative of the Delhi Government, did not object to the decision to raise the metro fares in the Fare Fixation Committee meeting,” he askedIJ
The Delhi Metro’s minimum fare was hiked from Rs 8 to Rs 10 and the maximum from Rs 30 to Rs 50 in May this year. If the fares are increased on October 10, those travelling for more than two kilometres will have to pay Rs 5-10 more. The Delhi Metro is used by over 30 lakh people every day in the National Capital Region that includes parts of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
Earlier, on Saturday, justifying the proposed hike, the Centre told Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal that the Government would need to pay Rs 3,000 crore annually for five years in case of the hike is postponed.
A day after the Centre set a condition to prevent the second proposed metro fare hike from October 10, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday wrote a letter to Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri offering to pay to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) half of financial burden of Rs 3,000 crore annually. The CM has said since the Delhi Government and the Centre is equal partners in the Delhi Metro, the Centre too should bear the burden of 50 per cent operational costs.
Meanwhile, a group of NSUI activists stopped a Metro train by jumping on the tracks on the Yellow line in protest against the proposed fare hike from October 10, which is scheduled to come into effect from Tuesday. The incident took place at the Vishwavidyalaya station of the busy corridor, connecting north Delhi to Gurgaon, around 12 pm. It briefly disrupted metro services on line 2.
“NSUI Delhi president Akshay along with two other activists stopped the metro due to the unjustified fare hike. We demand that the proposed hike be rolled back and students be provided subsidised passes,” an NSUI spokesperson said.