Rail fare hike proposal under examination: Kharge

October 03, 2013 04:18 pm | Updated 04:18 pm IST - New Delhi

Union Minister for Steel, Beni Prasad Verma exchanging documents with Minister of Railways Mallikarjun Kharge after signing of an MoU between Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) and Indian Railways for setting up of a Forged Wheel Plant at Raebareli, Uttar Pradesh, in New Delhi on Thursday.

Union Minister for Steel, Beni Prasad Verma exchanging documents with Minister of Railways Mallikarjun Kharge after signing of an MoU between Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) and Indian Railways for setting up of a Forged Wheel Plant at Raebareli, Uttar Pradesh, in New Delhi on Thursday.

A proposal to increase rail fare is under examination and a decision will be taken shortly, Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said.

“Fuel adjustment component (FAC) was announced in the budget and as per the budget proposal it should have been implemented from October 1. The file containing the FAC proposal has come to me and I am examining it and a decision will be taken shortly,” Mr. Kharge said at the sidelines of a function here.

To repeated queries whether there will be a FAC-linked revision in passenger and freight tariff in near future to reduce the losses in passenger segment, Mr. Kharge did not rule out the possibility of any increase and only said, “I am examining it. As soon as we arrive at some conclusions, then we will decide on it.”

According to the budget proposal, the fuel component is segregated from tariff as FAC. Railways is expected to revise the passenger and freight tariff in every six-month after taking into account the input cost and the prevailing market condition.

According to the calculation, railways will have to bear a burden of Rs 1,200 crore due to increased energy and input cost in the next six month. The cross-subsidy for passenger service is currently touching Rs 26,000 crore in a year.

The then Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal had announced the implementation of FAC-linked revision in only freight tariff from April 1. As regards to passenger fare, since it was revised only in January this year, it was not touched then.

Railways had decided not to pass the additional burden of Rs. 850 crore because of the fuel hike to the passengers and absorbed it then.

Railways has imposed 15 per cent levy as the busy season charge on all commodities from October 1.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.