Elections in Delhi due this year-end may take a toll on Delhi Metro. With the Ministry of Urban Development and the Delhi Government delaying steps to increase fares, the operating profits of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) have taken a hit in fiscal 2013.

“We make operating profits. But the operating profits (of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation) have gone down this year,” Mangu Singh, Managing Director, DMRC, told Business Line on the sidelines of a conference. DMRC is yet to announce the results for this year.

Delhi Metro had written to the Urban Development Ministry seeking the setting up of a fare fixation committee to revise fares, but the Ministry is yet to set up such as committee.

Operational costs

DMRC’s operational costs have gone up since 2012 after electricity charges were raised in Delhi. As a result, fuel charges had started accounting for 40 per cent of DMRC’s operating costs instead of the 30 per cent level.

Last year, too, the Urban Development Secretary, Sudhir Krishna, had called for the need to increase fares.

The public sector undertaking had registered an operating profit of Rs 654 crore in 2011-12, on a revenue of Rs 2,248 crore. Its operating profits had been on an upward trend since 2009-10. In 2013, Delhi Metro has seen a 16 per cent increase in average daily passengers compared with last year, said Singh. At present, it moves an average of 22 lakh passengers a day on working days. This is up from the daily average ridership of 19 lakh in mid-2012, 16.6 lakh in fiscal 2011-12, and 12.6 lakh in 2010-11.

Fare hikes of public transport services such as bus, train and Metros are politically-sensitive decisions, which could explain why the Delhi Metro’s fare revision plan continues to hang in balance.

In fact, recently, India Ratings had said there was need to increase fares of State road transport undertakings, the Government-owned units who operate buses, by about 18 per cent on average to ensure they stop making operating losses.

mamuni.das@thehindu.co.in

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