By Admin 
Politics has intensified over the decision of Railways to increase passenger fares. Opposition parties have termed it as a step that will increase inflation and a burden on the common man. Whereas BJP has called it a necessary and very minor increase. After the reactions of the spokespersons of SP, Congress and BJP came to light, the debate on the decision of the Railways has started.
Regarding the increase in rail fare, Congress State President Ajay Rai, while talking to ABP News, said that good days have come. Under his rule, the prices of any essential commodity or related system have only increased, not decreased. This was the promise of good days. The poor man is troubled today and this government is giving relief to the people in this way.
Forget air travel, now even rail travel is difficult – Fakhrul Hasan Chand
SP spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan Chand said that BJP had promised that anyone wearing slippers will also travel by plane. But now the situation is such that leave alone air travel, even train travel is becoming expensive. He said that due to the government’s policies, air fares have already skyrocketed and now additional burden is being put on the poor and middle class by increasing railway fares. The person traveling by train is a common citizen, but he is being hit by increasing taxes and fares.
The government took full care of the poor and middle class – Rakesh Kumar Tripathi
Whereas BJP spokesperson Rakesh Kumar Tripathi rejected the allegations of the opposition and said that railway fares had not increased for a long time. Whereas the facilities provided to the passengers have continuously increased. He said that this increase is very minor and the government has taken full care that it does not have much impact on the poor and middle class.
Fare increased by 2 paisa per kilometer in AC class
According to the information released by the Railways, if you travel in ordinary class for a distance of more than 215 kilometers, now you will have to pay 1 paise more per kilometer. Whereas in non-AC category of mail and express trains, there has been an increase of 2 paise per kilometer. The fare in AC class has also been increased by 2 paise per kilometer. However, it is a matter of relief that there will be no increase in fare for journeys up to 215 kilometers in ordinary class. For example, on non-AC journey of 500 km, passengers will now have to pay approximately Rs 10 extra.
Expenditure on pension reached Rs 60,000 crore
Railways says that this new fare structure is expected to generate additional income of about Rs 600 crore in the current financial year. Railways has cited rising costs as the reason behind increasing the fare. According to the department, the human resource cost of Railways has increased to Rs 1,15,000 crore. Whereas the expenditure on pension has reached Rs 60,000 crore. The total operating cost of Railways in the year 2024-25 is estimated to be Rs 2,63,000 crore. For this reason, change in the fare structure has been said to be necessary.
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