In the face of protest from alliance partner Shiv Sena and its own party MPs, the BJP-led NDA Government on Tuesday decided not to implement the rail hike on second class suburban trains for travel upto 80 km. However, long distance travelers will have no such luck. From Wednesday, they will have to shell out fares hiked by 14.2 per cent. A late evening railway ministry order said that the proposed June 20 hike in rail fares would not apply to second class suburban trains for travel upto 80 km.
According to the new rates proposed, a Rs85 monthly season ticket (II Class) would have cost Rs150, while a Rs190 monthly pass would have been priced at Rs480. The monthly season pass of Rs795 for the first class was put to Rs1,930. likewise, a first class commuter with a monthly pass of Rs1,740 would have shelled out Rs2,120 more for the same journey.
The Railway Ministry’s new fare structure, a decision authenticated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has resulted in widespread protests by the Opposition as also from BJP’s allies. The Congress continued with its protests and blocked tracks and stopped a train at Palam Railway Station demanding immediate rollback of the increase in rail fares.
The Railway Ministry’s decision came after at least 10 BJP and Shiv Sena MPs met the Railway Minister Sadananda Gowda to press for a rollback, especially to reduce the hike in the suburban rail fare in Mumbai. Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray too had flayed the decision and demanded a rollback.
BJP MPs, led by Kirit Somaiya, called on Gowda and quoted him saying that he assured of a “positive” decision on their demand. Somaiya said Gowda has also assured them that more facilities will be provided to suburban travelers.
The recent hike in rail fares has led to a steep increase in the prices of monthly passes for Mumbai local trains. They see the heaviest rush among all suburban rail networks and are a lifeline of Maharashtra capital and India’s commercial hub. According to the lok Sabha members visiting Rail Bhawan, the people in their constituencies expressed displeasure about the rise in monthly fares.
With Maharashtra going to polls later this year, the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance do not want the hike to spoil their chances of winning the polls.The long distance fares would, however, remain untouched. “No question of going off-track. The announcement was made after several rounds of discussions at PMO, Finance and Railway Ministry levels. The Cabinet members were apprised about the possible hike proposed by the last (UPA) Government,” said a top railway board source.
As per the new tariff, rail travelers will have to pay 14.2 per cent in passenger fares, besides freight rate for all commodities will also go up by about 6.5 per cent from June 25. According to a senior Railway official, those who have purchased tickets earlier at pre-revised rates, will have to pay the differences either at booking offices or in trains.