Railway fare may be costlier as Govt proposes safety cess

A safety cess was last levied in 2002 during Nitish Kumar’s term as the railway minister.

The government is likely to implement a 'safety cess' to increase revenues in the Railways. If the cess is imposed then passenger train tickets are likely to witness a marginal hike.

The cess is likely to be fixed at less than 2% of the total fare amount. Reeling under a Rs 32,000 crore debt burden, this move could ease the woes of the Railways to a certain extent.

A safety cess on passenger tickets is under consideration," Union Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu had told reporters. He however did not specify when the cess would be introduced.
A safety cess was last levied in 2002 during Nitish Kumar's term as the railway minister to service a special fund of Rs 17,500 crore. The fund was set up to take up several tasks, including restoration of old bridges, besides signaling and track modernisation works.

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