Bombay HC stays proposed Metro fare hike till Jan 29

The Bombay High Court today stayed till January 29 the proposed hike in fares of the Versova- Ghatkopar Metro rail corridor.

The stay was granted by a bench headed by Justice Abhay Oka which said that the hike should not be implemented until the final hearing of the petition, filed by Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA).

Sanjay Nirupam, head of Congress party in Mumbai, also filed an intervention application challenging the hike.

His plea has been taken up for hearing along with the petition filed by MMRDA. Mumbai Metro One (MMOPL), a subsidiary of Reliance Energy, which is operating the Versova-Ghatkopar corridor, had earlier announced that it will increase the fares by Rs 5 from December 1.

Instead of the earlier slabs of Rs 10, 20, 30 and 40, the proposed new structure will have five slabs of Rs 10, 20, 25, 35 and 45.

The fare slabs per trip for the return journey token category have been similarly revamped from Rs 10, 15, 25 and 30 to Rs 10, 20, 22.50, 30 and 35.

However, MMRDA, which had commissioned the Mumbai Metro, has challenged the hike. Nirupam has alleged that the central government was facilitating private profiteering by allowing multiple fare hikes. He demanded that there should be a fare hike every four years, as per the agreement, and not frequently.

Image: Mumbai Metro I. Photograph: Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff.com