Karnataka to consider RTC bus fare hike as fuel costs rise, says Transport Minister
Karnataka Transport Minister Byrathi Suresh on Tuesday (June 30) said the State government is considering a marginal revision in fares of buses operated by the
Karnataka Transport Minister Byrathi Suresh on Tuesday (June 30) said the State government is considering a marginal revision in fares of buses operated by the State-run Road Transport Corporations (RTCs) following a sharp increase in fuel prices over the past few months. The Minister said that the fuel prices have increased four times in the last five to six months, but the government has so far refrained from increasing bus fares in order to protect commuters from additional financial burden. “We have not increased bus fares despite repeated fuel price hikes. But now a marginal revision is being considered. A final decision will be taken only after discussions with Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, followed by approval from the State Cabinet,” he said.
He added that any increase would be aimed at reducing the mounting financial losses of the RTCs while ensuring that passengers are affected as little as possible. Shakti reimbursements Meanwhile, Mr. Suresh said the Congress government’s flagship Shakti scheme, which offers free bus travel for women in Karnataka, has led to pending reimbursement dues of around ₹5,500 crore to the State transport corporations. He said that the Transport Department has requested the Chief Minister to release the pending dues at the earliest to ease the financial pressure on the corporations. The Minister also said salary arrears of employees in RTCs would be cleared after reviewing the State’s financial position.
Electric buses Responding to criticism from Tejasvi Surya, BJP Bengaluru South MP, over the State’s handling of centrally supported electric bus procurement, Mr. Suresh rejected the allegations and accused the MP of misleading the public. Surya had alleged recently that the Karnataka government is delaying the induction of 4,500 electric buses sanctioned by the Centre for the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), and claimed that the Congress government is prioritising expensive tunnel road over improving Bengaluru’s public transport Suresh said that Karnataka plans to procure 4,500 electric buses on an eight-year contract basis. However, he clarified that the Union government would not bear the entire cost of the project.
According to Mr. Suresh, the Centre’s contribution is limited to around ₹30 lakh to ₹35 lakh per bus, while the State government would still have to pay the contracting company between ₹2,850 crore and ₹3,000 crore annually, depending on the number of kilometres operated by the buses. He said that portraying the project as being fully funded by the Centre was inaccurate and ignored the significant financial commitment required from the State government.
The BriefWire