In a set back to senior citizens and other passengers who were earlier eligible for railway concessions, Indian Railways has refused to restore and resume rail concessions, anytime soon.
Infact, Govt has informed that they lost Rs 2000 crore due to various concessions provided before the pandemic hit. But now, they are in mood to repeat these concessions, and incur more loss.
More details right here..
Indian Railways: No More Concessions
In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has informed that they are in no position to restore railway concessions for its passengers.
Due to the pandemic, Railways had stopped all concessions, effective March 20, 2020, when they had also stopped normal running of trains.
Since then, out of 53 different types of concessions, only 15 categories: 4 types of concessions under ‘Divyangjan’ category, and 11 types of concessions under patients and students category.
Rest all concessions have been suspended, and they cant be resumed now.
The Railways Minister did admit that they have received request from various quarters to resume concessions, but they are in no position to do so.
Rs 2000 Crore Loss Due To Concessions!
In the reply, the Railways Minister also stated that due to various types of 53 concessions, Indian Railways lost Rs 2058.61 crore in 2019-20, that is Rs 5 crore loss per day.
Ever since the concessions stopped in 2020, they have lost only Rs 38 crore.
Hence, it becomes apparent that Indian Railways is in no mood to restore the concessions any time soon.
Senior citizens have been hit hard due to the lack of concessions, as they are now paying full fare.
We will keep you updated, as more details come in.