Students protest against Delhi Metro fare hike, demand concessions

New Delhi, Aug 26 (PTI) Several student groups on Tuesday staged protests in the national capital against the recent metro fare hike, demanding immediate rollback and concessional passes for students.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) had on Monday revised passenger fares after nearly eight years, citing COVID losses, loan repayments and rising maintenance costs. The hike ranges from Rs 1 to Rs 4 depending on the distance travelled, officials said.

Outside the DMRC headquarters, Students' Federation of India (SFI) and All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) members said the hike would hit students and working women the hardest as they rely heavily on the metro for their daily commute.

They claimed lakhs of students already spend over Rs 100 per day on travel, and the hike would add an additional burden of Rs 500-800 per month.

"A large section of the student community comes from middle-class and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Even a ten-rupee rise per trip means hundreds more every month, forcing us to choose between travel and essentials like books, photocopies and meals," said SFI Delhi State Committee member Sohan Kumar Yadav.

SFI activist Abhinandana Pratyashi said the fare hike would push many women students towards cheaper but unsafe transport options. "For many women students and working women, the metro is the only safe and dependable means of reaching colleges, workplaces and homes. Making it unaffordable denies women their basic right to mobility and security," added AIDWA Delhi secretary Kavita Sharma.

Separately, the Aam Aadmi Party's student wing, Association of Students for Alternative Politics (ASAP) held a "Metro Concession March" from Motilal Nehru College to Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma (ARSD) College, led by former MLA Vinay Mishra. MLA Sanjeev Jha said students submitted a memorandum to the university administration, highlighting that the fare hike has made travel unaffordable.

"Before the elections, the BJP had promised students metro passes, but that promise turned out to be false. The hike has only added to students' hardships. We demand at least 50 per cent concession on metro fares," ASAP said in a statement.

The SFI, AIDWA and ASAP, all demanded that the DMRC withdraw the hike and urged both the Centre and the Delhi government to introduce concessional metro passes for students. PTI MHS HIG HIG