Shruti Suman
In a significant development for senior citizens who have long been advocating for discounted train fares, the question arises whether Indian Railways will restore the pre-COVID era concessions in ticket fares for them. On Friday, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw addressed the issue, stating that every passenger currently receives a 55% concession on train journeys. This statement was made in response to demands to reinstate pre-COVID fare concessions for senior citizens and media personnel.
Will the Concession in Ticket Fare be Reinstated?
While Vaishnaw did not directly address questions from the media about the restoration of concessions, he emphasized that Indian Railways is already providing a 55% concession on train fares to all passengers.
Vaishnaw made these comments while in Ahmedabad, where he was reviewing the progress of the ongoing bullet train project and addressing other matters.
Railway Offered 50% Concession During COVID Era
Prior to the COVID-19 lockdown imposed in March 2020, Railways provided a 50% concession on train fares to senior citizens and government-accredited journalists.
Even though railway operations came to a complete halt during the lockdown, when they resumed in June 2022, the Railway Ministry did not reinstate these concessions. Since then, the issue has been raised on different platforms, including in both houses of parliament too.
Despite being questioned by fellow parliamentarians on multiple occasions in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, the Railway Minister has maintained a consistent stance.
Earlier, in response to an RTI application by Madhya Pradesh-based Chandra Shekhar Gaur, Indian Railways revealed that it earned about Rs 2,242 crore from approximately 15 crore senior citizens in the financial year 2022-23.
Passenger Capacity To Increase Up To almost Crores
Meanwhile, in an exclusive interview with Financial Express, the Railway Minister shared plans to increase the passenger capacity of Indian Railways to up to 1000 crores by 2030. He also discussed various measures and initiatives aimed at improving the railway system in the country.
Addressing concerns about the confirmation of train tickets from IRCTC, the minister stated that IRCTC is continuously working to enhance the ticket reservation facility. He mentioned that the recent implementation of certain technologies resulted in a 24% increase in the number of reserved or confirmed seats on specific sections.
Regarding the allocation of vacant seats, the minister explained that station-wise reservation quotas and Artificial Intelligence-based algorithms determine seat assignments for passengers based on their journey details.
