Bengaluru Metro Fare: Amid criticism, the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has put on hold a fare hike scheduled to take effect from February 9. In a statement issued on Sunday, the BMRCL said that the fare revision announced earlier will not be implemented until further notice.
Add informalnewz.com as a Preferred Source
Bengaluru Metro Fare: The Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has temporarily put on hold the fare hike scheduled to be implemented from February 9 amid criticism. In a statement issued on Sunday, BMRCL said that the earlier announcement regarding fare revision will not be implemented until further orders, indicating that a final decision is still pending.
Clarifying its position, BMRCL said, “The media release issued on February 5, announcing the annual fare revision to be implemented from February 9, has been put on hold until further orders.”
The corporation further said that the matter will be considered by the board before a final decision is taken. “After the board’s review, a decision regarding the revised fares will be communicated.”
Reiterating its service commitment, BMRCL said it will continue to prioritize the interests of passengers. “BMRCL is committed to providing safe, reliable, and affordable metro services to the citizens of Bengaluru,” BMRCL said.
Here are the passenger reactions:
The state government’s decision to halt fare hikes brought relief to daily commuters, who expressed hope that fares would be reduced in the coming days.
One social media user said, “Very good. Now we want the next step to be a gradual fare reduction back to what it was. Can we go back to those old days?”
Many users also questioned BMRCL’s use of the word “affordable” to describe the metro service, sarcastically saying it wasn’t affordable at all. Others claimed that BMRCL postponed the fare hike after BJP MP Tejasvi Surya intervened.
This decision coincided with Tejasvi Surya’s visit to the Namma Bengaluru Metro Station on Sunday, where he spoke with passengers to gauge their opinion on the fare hike. Speaking to reporters, Surya claimed that passengers were upset by the frequent fare hikes.
He accused Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his Deputy Chief Minister, D.K. Shivakumar, of “misleading the public by blaming the central government” for the fare hike and demanded the formation of a Fare Fixation Committee (FFC).
On Saturday, Surya stated that Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had directed officials to halt the proposed metro fare hike.
He further stated that the minister had assured a personal review of the irregularities in the FFC and that a new committee could be considered if the state government requested it.
Meanwhile, Union Steel and Heavy Industries Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy blamed the state government for the metro fare hike, alleging that despite the central government asking the state government not to increase fares, the state government is adamant on implementing it.
Speaking to reporters in Mysore, the second-largest leader of the JD(S) said, “After increasing the metro fares, the state government is blaming the central government for it, which is wrong.”
Kumaraswamy further alleged that the state government is unwilling to maintain a good working relationship with the central government to implement central schemes and policies.
