Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Like every year, this time too, trains and buses are witnessing heavy festive rush as people travel to celebrate Diwali and Chhath puja with their families and friends. However, unavailability of seats in trains have pushed the bus fares on the higher side.
To reach Indore from Mumbai, Pune and Hyderabad by bus, passengers are paying double the normal fare, while air travel prices are also skyrocketing. Crowds have also started increasing for local routes Khandwa, Hoshangabad and Khargone. Here too, passengers are being charged higher fares.
People living in other cities for jobs find it difficult to go to their homes during festivals. Even after booking months in advance, reserved seats are not available in trains. Under compulsion one has to travel by bus at the last moment. Bus fares also double during Diwali. Passengers are forced to travel by paying higher fares. The fare from Mumbai to Indore has reached around Rs 3500 to Rs 6000 between 9th and 11th November. Same is the condition of buses coming to Indore from other cities. The fare for all the buses has doubled.
Airfare doubled before Diwali
Air fares are also skyrocketing three days before Diwali, that is on 9, 10 and 11 November. The fare from Mumbai to Indore is around Rs 11,000, whereas on normal days a ticket is available for Rs 5,500. The fare from Pune to Indore has reached Rs 12,000. The fare from Bengaluru is Rs 11,000 and the fare from Ahmedabad to Indore has also crossed Rs 10,000. On normal days, a ticket from Ahmedabad costs around Rs 4,200.
RTO gave instructions to bus operators
The Transport Department called a meeting of bus operators regarding charging higher fares for buses during the festival. RTO officer Pradeep Kumar Sharma said that a meeting of bus operators was held and instructions have been given to everyone not to charge more fare. Operators say that buses go empty from one side, hence they charge more fare from the other side. Action is also being taken against overloading and excess fare in buses on Indore-Khandwa, Indore-Hoshangabad, Khargone routes.
