Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Jun 11: Commuters in the district will have to shell out more for their daily travel as the Dakshina Kannada Bus Operators’ Association has decided to hike the fares of private city and rural buses effective from Saturday, June 13. The revision will see ticket prices go up by a minimum of Rs 1 to a maximum of Rs 2.
According to an official release issued by the association on Thursday, tickets currently priced between Rs 12 and Rs 20 will see an increase of Rs 1. For all bus tickets priced above Rs 20, the fare will be hiked by Rs 2.
Association president Azeez Parthippady and general secretary Ramachandra Pilar stated that the operators were forced to levy a cess on the existing fares to cope with the skyrocketing costs of operational inputs, especially diesel. They clarified that the revised tariff will be applicable to buses operating both within the city limits and across rural sectors.
However, in a relief to the student community, the association confirmed that it will continue to issue Chalo student cards, maintaining the existing 60% fare concession. The operators pointed out that the travel fares were last revised on July 26, 2021, and the overall input costs have surged by over 40% since then.
State-wide fare revision
The move comes closely on the heels of the Federation of Stage Carriage Bus Operators’ Association of Karnataka increasing travel fares across the state by Rs 5 to Rs 8 from June 8 through a similar cess implementation.
Federation president Kuyiladi Suresh Nayak explained that an official notification by the transport department authorises operators to levy a cess at the rate of 4 paise to 25 paise per passenger per kilometre whenever there is a substantial rise in operational costs.
Nayak highlighted that the Karnataka government’s VAT hike on fuel a year ago had initially bumped up diesel prices by Rs 3, while the Centre subsequently raised diesel prices by Rs 8.17 in four separate instalments. Along with fuel, the prices of spare parts and other crucial inputs have also witnessed a steep increase over the past few years, making the fare hike inevitable for the survival of the private transport sector.