(a) whether the Railways has recently hiked the minimum passenger fare for non-suburban train services and if so, the details thereof along with objective behind such an action;
(b) the class of passengers affected and the estimated revenue to be generated as a result thereof; and
(c) the steps taken by the Government to protect the interests of train passengers?
MINISTER OF RAILWAYS
(SHRI SURESH PRABHAKAR PRABHU)
(a) to (c): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.
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STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (c) OF STARRED QUESTION NO.149 BY SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE AND DR. HEENA VIJAYKUMAR GAVIT TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 09.12.2015 REGARDING HIKE IN PASSENGER FARE.
(a) Yes, Madam. The minimum chargeable passenger fare for Second Class Non-suburban services has been increased from ? 5 to ? 10 to bring it at par with the rate of Platform tickets. Earlier i.e. from 01.04.2015, Railways had increased the price of Platform ticket from ? 5 to ? 10, with a view to control the rush on platforms. However that objective could not be realised as passengers started purchasing the minimum charge single journey Second Class tickets of ? 5 in lieu of the Platform ticket. It is hoped that the step now taken will help in decongestion of Platforms.
(b) The change is applicable only for Second Class (Non-suburban) Passengers travelling in the 1 to 15 kilometer distance slab only. The additional revenue to be generated through this change is estimated around ? 35 crore during the remaining period of current financial year 2015-16.
(c) Although the single journey minimum fare for Second Class Non-suburban has been increased, there has been no corresponding increase in the Monthly Season Ticket price. This has been done to protect the interest of the regular passengers. Further, railways have augmented 393 Second Class/Sleeper coaches on a permanent basis till November 2015, so that greater number of passengers can be transported.
Apart from this, railways have been continuously upgrading amenities at stations and, so far 961 stations out of 1195 station identified for development under the ‘Adarsh Station Scheme’ have been upgraded.
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