No proposal to increase rail fares

New Delhi: The Indian Railways does not have any plan to raise fares, the government informed Parliament on Wednesday.

In a written reply in Lok Sabha, Minister of State of Railways Rajen Gohain said the national transporter had seen an increase in passenger traffic of 0.68 percent and a spike of 0.99 percent between Delhi and Mumbai during April- November 2017 as compared to the corresponding period last year.

To queries on passenger traffic, special trains and their fares, he said railways run these trains during peak seasons, festivals, special events for clearance of extra rush of passengers keeping in view the pattern of traffic, commercial justification, operational feasibility and availability of resources.

"Special trains on special charges are introduced based on demand pattern. They run over and above the scheduled time-tabled trains and are charged at the rate of 10 percent of basic fare for the second class for reserved accommodation and 30 per cent of basic fare for all other classes, subject to minimum and maximum", the minister said.