Mumbai: Passengers purchasing railway tickets or suburban season passes worth ₹2,000 or more through UPI will have to pay an additional ₹5.90 from October 15, with the charge comprising ₹5 Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) and 90 paise GST.
New Charge Effective After Midnight On October 14
The new charge will come into effect after midnight on October 14 and will apply to eligible UPI transactions for both suburban and long-distance railway tickets. Passengers purchasing weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, half-yearly and annual suburban passes will be affected if the transaction value crosses the ₹2,000 threshold. Passengers can continue to purchase tickets and passes at railway counters, while eligible online transactions will attract the additional charge.
The impact will be more noticeable for passengers buying first-class and AC passes, particularly on longer routes. For instance, a one-month AC pass between CSMT and Kalyan currently costs ₹2,340. After the new charge, a passenger paying through UPI will have to pay ₹2,345.90. A three-month first-class pass on the same route, currently priced at ₹3,295, will cost ₹3,300.90.
For the CSMT-Panvel AC monthly pass, passengers currently pay ₹2,750. The fare will effectively rise to ₹2,755.90 for eligible UPI transactions.
CSMT-Panvel AC Pass Fare To Increase For Eligible UPI Transactions
Mumbai’s suburban railway has a large number of season-ticket holders, including passengers using monthly and quarterly AC and first-class passes. The additional charge is therefore expected to affect regular commuters making higher-value transactions.
Western Railway Zonal Railway Users’ Consultative Committee member Kailash Verma said the Railways should consider absorbing the charge instead of passing it on to passengers. “Mumbai suburban trains carry around 75-80 lakh passengers daily. The Railways should send a proposal to the Finance Ministry to waive MDR for suburban railway transactions as a special case,” he said.
FARE IMPACT FROM OCTOBER 15
CSMT–Kalyan AC monthly pass
Current fare : ₹2,340
MDR + GST : ₹5.90
New amount : ₹2,345.90
CSMT–Kalyan First Class quarterly pass
Current fare : ₹3,295
MDR + GST : ₹5.90
New amount : ₹3,300.90
CSMT–Panvel AC monthly pass
Current fare : ₹2,750
MDR + GST : ₹5.90
New amount : ₹2,755.90
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