3 days ago
Indian Railways considers marginal hike in train tickets from July 1
Train travel is likely to get slightly costlier from next month, with Indian Railways considering a hike in ticket prices from July 1 onwards.
According to official sources, the passenger fare for non-AC Mail and Express trains will be hiked by one paisa per kilometre. Similarly, the fare hike for air-conditioned coaches will be two paise per kilometre.
However, there will be no increase in fare for suburban tickets and monthly season tickets, nor will there be any fare hike for ordinary second class tickets up to 500 kilometres. 'However, a hike is being considered for train tickets in Ordinary Second Class for a journey distance exceeding 500 km, at the rate of half a paise per km,' official sources added.
'Long overdue'
According to data available with the Ministry of Railways, 715 crore passengers travelled by the Indian Railways between April 2024 to March 2025, including 81 crore passengers who travelled in AC and sleeper class, and 634 crore who were unreserved class passengers. The Indian Railways earned ₹75, 750 crore from passenger revenue in the financial year 2024-25.
This planned hike in train tickets comes after five years of unchanged fares. M. Jamshed, Former Member (Traffic), Railway Board said that a fare hike of one to two paise per km per passenger was a rationalisation that was long overdue. 'This hike shall contribute to an additional ₹1,500 crore to ₹1,600 crore in passenger revenues. Similar fare hikes took place in 2013, 2014, and in 2020,' Mr. Jamshed told The Hindu.
Financial sustainability concerns
He added that, even with a fare hike, the financial sustainability of the Indian Railways remains a challenge. 'FY2024-25 has closed with total earnings below the budgetary estimates. Passenger revenue did increase to ₹75,457 crore but still remained below the Budgetary Estimates of ₹80,000 crore. With freight incremental loading of 26 million tons — that is, from 1,591 to 1,617 million tons — the revenue generation was marginal,' Mr. Jamshed said. 'Stiffer targets for FY2025-26 of ₹92,000 crore for passenger revenue are unlikely to be achieved.'
'Aggressive marketing of freight services and a fare hike to reach a level of break even in next five years could be the survival strategy for Indian Railways,' Mr. Jamshed added.
A former railway official said that, from an individual passenger's perspective, the hike appears nominal. 'For instance, 2AC fare from Delhi to Mumbai on Mumbai-Central Tejas Rajdhani, which is currently ₹4,245, will increase by around ₹27. With increase in hike, there should also be a focus on improvement of services, like focus on clean toilets and quality meals,' the official added.
