Delhi Metro fares hike: Minimum Rs 10, Maximum Rs 50; ticket prices to go up again in October

Come Wednesday, commuters will have to shell out more for travelling on the Delhi Metro, with the authorities announcing a fare hike today.

The new minimum fare will be up from Rs 8 to Rs 10 while the maximum would be Rs 50 as against the existing Rs 30, a Delhi Metro spokesperson said.

This arrangement will be in place till September. From October, the maximum fare would go upto Rs 60.

On Sundays and national holidays, the maximum fare would be Rs 40, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) Chief Spokesperson Anuj Dayal and Director Finance K K Saberwal told a news conference.

The new fare structure is: up to 2 kms -- Rs 10, 2 to 5 kms -- Rs 15, 5 to 12 kms -- Rs 20, 12 to 21 kms -- Rs 30, 21 to 32 kms -- Rs 40, and for journeys of over 32 kms Rs 50.

This is in tune with the recommendations of a three- member Fare Fixation Committee, which were accepted by the DMRC board headed by the Union Urban Development Secretary Rajib Gauba. The DMRC had last revised the fares in 2009.

Earlier, this year, NITI Aayog requested the Prime Minister's office to take a call on raising fares.

It said that the unchanged price in seven years could impact the quality of the capital's public transport, reported The Hindustan Times.

The report said NITI Aayog's vice chairman Arvind Pangariya wrote a letter to PMO, he wrote, "At the current level, the fares are inadequate for the provision of high quality services and maintenance".

Pangariya also made a request to PMO to jointly review the matter with the Union urban development ministry.

The corporation has itself repeatedly written to the ministry and Delhi government for fare revision over the years, citing rising cost of operation. Since 2009, the cost of electricity has witnessed more than 90 per cent hike. Of all the Metro operating cost, the power bill alone accounts for almost 30 per cent.

"There is considerable evidence pointing to the fact that without such increases, Metro service and physical infrastructure deteriorate, over time," Panagariya wrote in his letter.

The DMRC, in 2015-16 suffered a net loss of Rs 708.5 crore, the ministry informed Parliament.

Last year, the Fare Fixation Committee of Delhi Metro submitted its report and recommended the lowest fares to be increased to Rs 10 from Rs 8 now, and the maximum fare to Rs 50 from Rs 30 at present.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation had last time revised the fares in 2009.

The government had in June 2016 year set up the three-member committee under former Delhi High Court judge, Justice (retired) ML Mehta to look into fare revision issue and report within three months.

Earlier, the DMRC had proposed a five-slab fare system in the range of Rs 10-50 to mitigate the "adverse" impact on its financial health.

The committee had earlier this month sought a three-month extension from the government for submission of its report, which was turned down by the Ministry, leaving it with no option but to present its report.

(With inputs from PTI)