METRO FARE HIKE BUT STATIONS STILL FULL OF COMMUTERS/ MULTIPLE PROTESTS/ ANTI PEOPLE HIKE, SAY COMMUTERS

Despite the recent gigantic hike in the fares of the Delhi Metro by DMRC, almost double in just last six months putting the commuters in quandary, the rush of the commuters in Delhi does not seem to be receding and the key metro stations like Rajiv Chowk, Gurugram, Dwarka and Badli full of commuters.

It’s not that the commuters are happy or satisfied with the arbitrary enhancement in fares but since they don’t have any alternate mode of transport to cope with the situation, they are constrained to keep on the services of Delhi Metro. About thirty lakh commuters avail the Delhi Metro Rail services which include large numbers of students, youths, women, senior citizens, traders and office going – private and government employees.

There is no doubt that this arbitrary and authoritarian manifold increase in the fares by DMRC on the recomendation of the Ministry of Urban Development’ s Price Fixation Committee has amounted to committing decoity on the pockets of the poor, underprivileged, marginal, lower and middle class sections of the society who are now paying just double of what they had been paying six months ago.

The maximum ticket which was of Rs 30 to 35 then has now been enhanced to Rs sixty one sided and similarly there is an increase of Rs. 10 on every travel after five kilometres.

Lakhs of students, the office goers and the small n medium traders including labourers, masons, carpenters, technicians, fourth class employees and the people with meagre income are the most affected lot who will now have to spend 20% of his earnings on Delhi Metro Fares every month in addition to other expenses in these hard days of sky rocketing prices of essential commodities. Is it not like committing decoity on the already cash starved pockets of the Delhi Metro commuters especially when the government of NCT of Delhi is ready to bear the fifty percent so called losses of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation that come to around 1500 crores but unfortunately the BJP led NDA political dispensation at the centre is not ready to cooperate and feels happy and satisfied to put the DELHITES in acute financial quandry and disarray.

Isn’t it shocking and highly uncalled for? There is opposition all around and various political parties are on streets criticizing this covertly and overtly anti people stand of the centre and are questioning in repentence that was it for this, that they had voted respected Narendra Modi Sir, who had always promised publicly for bringing the ACCHE DIN. However, despite all this confusion, choas and problems, the Delhi Metro commuters are confronted with, after this arbitrary anti people hike, the DELHI GOVERNMENT of Arvind Kejrival is also to be equally held responsible for this lapse, as not only has its five directors who were members of the Metro rail fares’ revising committe never attended its any meeting except for once during the last two years to oppose these fare hike proposals of the centre.

Not only this but in the context of providing safe, expeditious and swift service of alternative bus transport the Delhi government has miserably failed on this significant front. Currently, the Delhi Transport Corporation is running on a huge loss of around four thousand crores and buses are in extreme short supply.
The CAG report finds that the total loss for the DTC in 2014-2015 was Rs.2,917.75 crore, the highest in the previous five financial years. Except on ring roads majority of the buses have been withdrawn on metro routes and commuters have to wait for hours together to get a bus. The Delhi Transport Corporation services are in total mess with the DTC staff behaving like dictator as the government of Delhi has no control over them. The DTC commuter is the greatest suffering lot.

It’s only because of the collapsing system of public road transport in DELHI that majority of the Delhites are constrained to avail the metro rail services despite 100% increase in fares in just 6 months.

Though the political parties like AAP, BJP and CONGRESS are dropping crocodile tears on METRO FARES today but the fact of the matter is its primarily the DELHI AND NCR commuters who have between the ill concieved politics of manipulations and maneuverability. What do you say friends?

SUNIL NEGI