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A little bit over two years in the past, exactly on March 19, 2020, the Ministry of Railways issued a round withdrawing practice ticket concession for numerous classes of individuals, together with senior residents. This was to stop non-essential journey. Whereas many of the pandemic-related restrictions have eased, the concessions are but to be restored. Our evaluation of RTI information revealed that between March 2020 and September 2022, the railways have solely saved round ₹2560.9 crore by withdrawing concessions for senior residents.
An RTI filed by Madhya Pradesh-based activist, Chandra Shekhar Gaur, stated that between March 2020 and September 2022, the railways earned ₹5808.85 crore by promoting tickets to senior residents. Girls passengers who’ve accomplished 58 years of age are allowed a 50 per cent concession in fare, whereas males are allowed a concession of 40 per cent, if they’ve accomplished 60 years of age, in all courses of trains, besides Garib Rath and sure different trains like Gatiman Categorical, Suvidha, and Humsafar trains.
Again to regular
In H1 FY23, Railways’ earnings out of senior residents’ tickets had been ₹2335.21 crore. That is simply ₹675.57 lesser than the cash that railways made in FY20, out of those tickets.
Gaur’s RTI’s reply additionally exhibits that the variety of senior residents who journey by practice has been growing since 2021 and will most likely surpass pre-pandemic ranges by the tip of FY23. Whereas 7.3 crore senior residents travelled by Indian Railways in FY20, it dipped to 1.9 crore in FY21. However it elevated to five.5 crore in FY22 and in FY23, till September finish, it was 3.87 crore.
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Railways’ passenger income up 76 per cent in April-November interval
Income generated stood at ₹34,303 crore, up 50 per cent; as in comparison with ₹22,904 crore in the identical interval final fiscal
Bid to convey again concessions
As restrictions have eased, there was a whole lot of hue and cry throughout sectors, in search of to revive concessions for senior residents.
“We senior residents are an unorganised sector, the place only a small proportion of individuals have pensions or earnings,” says TRP Unny, former Secretary Common, All India Senior Residents’ Confederation, a senior residents’ physique. Unny says the physique has taken up the difficulty with the centre on a number of events. “Additionally, The Authorities of India has assured within the Nationwide Coverage on Older Individuals 1999 that they’ll give concessions to senior residents in all modes of transport,” he says.
Agreeing with this, improvement economist, Venkatesh Athreya, says, “This concession needs to be restored since it might profit the poorer travellers who’re much more quite a few than the wealthy. A small proportion wouldn’t want it. They are often inspired to not avail of the concessional fare.”
Nonetheless, the centre in July stated that it isn’t fascinating to revive concessions as the associated fee weighs closely on the Railways. However, a Comptroller and Auditor Common report from 2019 famous that “On a median, 8.42 per cent of the reserved passenger earnings had been allowed as concessions below numerous classes.” However, the identical report stated that variety of reserved passengers availing concession had grown at a price of 6.3 per cent per yr between 2015-16 and 2017-18.
Printed on December 7, 2022
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