Travelling on the Delhi metro will be costlier from today with tickets costing Rs 10 more and a maximum fare of Rs 60. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has called the hike "too steep" and tweeted, "The centre should have been more considerate for common man." The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has defended its second fare increase in six months, citing rising losses and input costs over the years.
Here are top 10 updates on Delhi Metro fare hikes
Metro tickets will cost Rs 20 for rides of up to 5 km, Rs 30 for five to 12 km, and Rs 40, Rs 50 and Rs 60 for longer journeys.
Smart card users, believed to be 70 per cent of metro riders, will continue to get 10 per cent discount on each ride.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has fiercely opposed the hike. This morning, its leader Ashutosh posted, "I travel regularly in Metro. Now I have to pay more. Double the cost. Painful for me and millions like me."
Amid AAP's objections, the metro's top decision-making body met for two hours last night and later said it would not interfere in the fare hike.
In the Delhi assembly yesterday, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia called the metro fare hike a "conspiracy" to benefit private cab aggregator services like Uber and Ola.
Union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had last week told the Delhi government that it would need to pay Rs 3,000 crore annually for five years if it wanted to stop the metro fare hike.
Mr Kejriwal responded that his government was ready to provide half the funds needed to meet the gap in the metro's finances for three months, if it was allowed to take over its operation.
Mr Puri wrote back: "While I appreciate your confidence, enthusiasm and keenness to take on more responsibility, I am constrained to point out that this again is also not in line with existing policy."
Delhi Metro, with the total network length of around 213 km, is the lifeline for millions in the capital.
When it started operating in 2002, the minimum fare was Rs. 4 and maximum was Rs. 8.
