The Hindu Business Line : Rlys has no plan to hike tariffs; to take Rs 400-cr hit

THE Railways is unlikely to increase its passenger or freight tariffs despite the Rs 2 hike in diesel prices. The hike is expected to cost the Railways an additional Rs 400 crore every year.

"We are not considering a hike in the passenger or freight fares at the moment," the Railway Board Chairman, Mr R.K. Singh, told Business Line from Lucknow.

"We will try to absorb the fuel price hike by economising the working expenditure," he added. The Railways consumes 200 crore litres of diesel annually.

The three diesel price hikes announced in 2004-05 had increased the fuel bill of the Railways by a total of Rs 940 crore this fiscal.

The Railways has accounted for this amount in its Budget this year. The hikes - of Re 1, Rs 1.48 and Rs 2.12 on a per litre basis - were brought about in June, August and November in 2004.

The Railways has provisioned Rs 9,151.27 crore for fuel expenses during the current fiscal.

In 2004-05, it spent Rs 8,613.68 crore on fuel expenses, according to the revised estimates, compared to the budgeted amount of Rs 8,243.7 crore.

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