Bus fare hike to be implemented in Karnataka from November 5

According to a report by The Hindu, following the recent hike in the prices of Nandini milk and curd in Karnataka, bus travel in the state's government road transport corporations (RTCs) is set to become expensive starting November 5. The extent of the fare hike will be decided on November 4. However, women and students will not be affected by this fare hike, as under the Shakti scheme, one of the five guarantees, women and recently exempted students receive free bus travel facilities.

Earlier, the issue of the fare hike was brought before a recent meeting of the state cabinet, but the decision was deferred at that time. Speaking to reporters near Chikkaballapura on Sunday, Transport Minister Byrathi Suresh announced that the new fares will come into effect from November 5 and the decision regarding the quantum of the fare hike will be taken on November 4. Defending the fare hike, the minister stated that the BJP-led central government has increased diesel prices five times over the past year. Due to this reason, the four state-run road transport corporations will have to bear an annual loss of ₹2,000 crore, while the total loss of these four RTCs stands at around ₹9,000 crore. Under these circumstances, an upward revision of fares has become inevitable.

The Transport Minister further stated that when this issue was discussed during the recent cabinet meeting, the cabinet and Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar gave the transport department the authority to make a decision regarding fare revision. He added that the cost of transport in RTCs in Karnataka is cheaper compared to the costs prevailing in other states. Earlier, speaking during the celebrations of the 71st Karnataka Rajyotsava, the Transport Minister informed that 845.33 crore journeys have been covered by women so far under the Shakti scheme and the government has spent ₹22,281.94 crore so far behind this scheme.

He also stated that around 10.07 lakh free student bus passes have been issued under this scheme. Furthermore, 6,500 new buses to be purchased through the PM-e Drive and World Bank schemes will be inducted into the RTC fleet in a phased manner. The minister also drew attention to the fact that orders have been issued to rename the North West Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation as Kittur Rani Chennamma Transport Corporation.