Operating and maintenance costs, Consumer Price Index among parameters to recalculate metro fare

Bengaluru's Deputy CM pauses metro fare hike for reassessment, citing operating costs and CPI, amid political disputes.

Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru Development Minister, who met with metro officials on Monday, said the State government and officials had jointly decided to pause the hike for a reassessment.

“Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) to considers multiple parameters such as operating and maintenance costs, changes in the Consumer Price Index, staff expenses, per-unit costs and energy cost. Based on these factors, we have asked officials to reassess the fares. Until then, the hike will remain on hold,” he said.

He also highlighted structural differences between Bengaluru’s metro system and others. “Compared to many metro systems, our fares are said to be higher. In Delhi, security is handled by the Union government through the Central Industrial Security Force. Here, the State bears the entire security cost. We also pay GST, which some other metro systems do not,” he noted.

Emphasising the State’s financial support to BMRCL, Mr. Shivakumar said the government had paid ₹1,064.32 crore towards cash loss reimbursement and ₹4,002.23 crore to the Centre towards loan repayment. “In total, ₹5,066.55 crore has been paid,” he said.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), though it received approval from its Fourth Fare Fixation Committee constituted in 2016, did not implement annual fare hikes for several years, enforcing only one revision in August 2025 after the committee’s recommendations came into effect.

Mr. Shivakumar alleged he had initially expected the issue to be discussed at a meeting in Delhi and had waited to see how the situation would unfold. “I was watching what orders would be issued and what kind of politics would be played. Unfortunately, politics overtook facts. That is why I remained silent. The proposed meeting in Delhi has now been postponed,” he said, adding that those calling the deferment a “temporary victory” should have raised the matter during the BMRCL board meeting held on Monday.