Kharge hits back, says Gowda can roll back railway fare hike if he wants

BANGALORE: Former Railway Minister and Congress MP Mallikarjuna Kharge on Sunday said his successor DV Sadananda Gowda is free to take a view on the increase in train fare and freight tariff that he had proposed, but had not implemented in view of the polls. “The matter is left to the new government.

If the new Railway Minister finds the hikes proposed are justified, he can go ahead and implement it. Otherwise, he is free to reverse it. He (Gowda) is the best judge of the situation, and can take an appropriate decision,” Kharge told ET.

Ahead of the polls, Kharge had announced 10% raise in passenger fare, and 5% hike in freight charges as recommended by the Railway Ministry’s expert panel. The new Railway Minister had remarked in Bangalore that his predecessor had put a burden on him by first announcing an increase in freight and fare, and not implementing them.

Kharge, who represents Gulbarga in Lok Sabha, headed the Ministry of Railways from June 2013 to May 2014, and took up many new lines, and flagged off many new train services. The veteran Congress leader said Railways was the biggest public sector enterprise in the country that meets the needs especially of poor people. “We have to tread very cautiously with the Railways.

One will have to see we don’t burden users with excessive charge while ensuring we get healthy revenues. We need to strike a balance,” he said.The former railway minister said Karnataka lagged behind many states including Maharashtra , Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi etc, when it came to rail network, and services. “The connectivity is far higher in Maharashtra. We must also get similar network in Karnataka besides new coach factories, and completion of on-going projects.”