rediff.com
News APP

NewsApp (Free)

Read news as it happens
Download NewsApp

Available on  gplay

Rediff.com  » Business » BJP, Sena MPs demand roll back in Mumbai suburban rail fare
This article was first published 9 years ago

BJP, Sena MPs demand roll back in Mumbai suburban rail fare

Last updated on: June 24, 2014 14:28 IST

Image: Commuters wait on a crowded railway platform as a train enters a suburban station in Mumbai.
Photographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters

The Narendra Modi government has come under pressure from its own MPs to reduce the hike in the suburban rail fare in Mumbai with 10 BJP and Shiv Sena MPs meeting Railway Minister Sadananda Gowda Tuesday to press for a roll back.

Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Kirit Somaiya said Gowda assured them of a ‘positive’ decision on their demand and added an announcement to this effect could be made in a few days.

. . .

BJP, Sena MPs demand roll back in Mumbai suburban rail fare

Image: Commuters disembark from crowded suburban trains during the morning rush hour at Churchgate railway station.
Photographs: Vivek Prakash/Reuters

The recent hike in rail fares has led to a steep increase in the prices of monthly passes for Mumbai local trains.

They see the heaviest rush among all suburban rail networks and are a lifeline of Maharashtra capital and India's commercial hub.

The MPs told PTI that people in their area were deeply upset about the rise in monthly fares and Gowda ‘agreed’ with them that the hike of over 150 per cent in some cases was not good.  

. . .

 

 

BJP, Sena MPs demand roll back in Mumbai suburban rail fare

Image: Commuters pass by as a man sits and waits for a train at Church Gate railway station in Mumbai.
Photographs: Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters

"The minister said Railway Board officials will meet soon and a relief will be announced," another BJP MP Kapil Patil said.

The state is going to polls later this year and the leaders of BJP-Shiv Sena alliance do not want the hike to spoil their chances of winning the polls.

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has publicly flayed the decision and demanded a rollback.

Somiaya said Gowda has also assured them that more facilities will be provided to suburban travellers and security will be enhanced.

 

© Copyright 2024 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of PTI content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent.