Train tickets to be costlier from July 1, know fares of AC, non-AC coaches, ‘fares will be raised in...’

Union Minister of State for Railways V Somanna on Friday said train fares will be raised in stages without affecting the commuters. Hinting that there may be a gradual hike in fares, the minister said, "Discussion is going on and we are proceeding stage by stage.” Somanna was responding to a question from a reporter on the possible additional fare increase following the July 1 increase in AC class railway fares. 

Asked if a railway station would be built at Parandur, where a greenfield airport has been proposed for Chennai, the union minister replied, “No final decision has been made yet. Discussions are still underway.” Earlier, Somanna conducted a window-trailing inspection in the Chennai-Arakkonam-Kancheepuram section, reviewing operational and safety aspects with DRM Chennai, Viswanath B. Eerya, and other officials. 

Fares of AC/non-AC coaches 

According to the new fares, the cost of AC travel might be 2 paise extra per kilometer, while non-AC travel by mail and express trains would cost an extra 1 paisa per kilometer. However, no changes in fares will be made for suburban tickets, monthly passes and second-class travel for 500 km. 

“As compared to the previous fare revisions in 2020 and 2013, the current increase will be the lowest. As far as suburban train and monthly season tickets are concerned, it has been decided not to increase any fare in the interest of daily commuters,” a railway official said. The official also said that ticket price of second-class for someone traveling up to 500 km will not change. More than that, fares may see hike by half paisa per kilometer. 

According to Railways, train fares last witnessed hike on January 1, 2020. At the time, second-class fare in Mail/Express trains increased by 1 paisa/km and 2 paise/km, respectively and in sleeper and AC classes they went up by 2 paise/km and 4 paise/km, respectively. After the Ministry announced Aadhaar-based OTP authentication for ticket reservations, new changes will be made in July.  

From July 1, the IRCTC’s official website and mobile app will provide Tatkal tickets only to users authenticated with Aadhaar. Aadhaar-based OTP authentication for train tickets will become mandatory for online Tatkal bookings from July 15.