Govt slashes DTC fares by 75%

Using DTC buses as public transports is going to be a cheap affair as the Delhi government has decided to offer a discount of upto 75 per cent. The government, while making an announcement in this regard, that the move will encourage more people to use public transport and discourage them from traveling in personal vehicles which will help in reducing Delhi’s ever problematic pollution. The new rule will be effective only for the month of January 2017.

As per the announcement, commuters will now have to pay a maximum of Rs 10 to travel in air-conditioned buses as against the Rs 25 earlier. The maximum fare in non-air conditioned buses has been slashed from Rs 15 to Rs 5. It was also announced that women and people belonging to the economically weaker section will get 75 per cent discount on their travel passes.

“The decision was taken to reduce the pollution level in Delhi which is at peak during winters,” Delhi Transport Minister Satyendar Jain said. “We decided to reduce fares to encourage the use of public transport,” he added. The minister said he hopes the decision will help bring down the number of cars on the roads. The Delhi government currently runs 4,500 buses. Last month, pollution levels soared in the national Capital, prompting the Delhi Chief Minister to call the city a “gas chamber”. The Delhi government was rapped by the National Green Tribunal for failing to act against those who are polluting the environment.

Last week, LG Najeeb Jung had also asked the Delhi government to work out the modalities of reducing DTC bus fares. Jung, who held a meeting with deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Transport minister Satyendar Jain and officials, had directed the transport department to reduce bus fares across different slabs for the next two months keeping the winter season in mind. Normally, winter months witness a spurt in pollution.