No fare hike for Mumbai Metro: High Court

The Bombay High Court yesterday restrained Reliance Infrastructure's Mumbai Metro One Private Limited (MMOPL) from implementing any hike in the fares on the Versova-Ghatkopar line. A bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice M S Sonak set aside the July 2015 decision of the Fare Fixation Committee, which had approved a hike in fares and recommended that the fare band for the above line be increased from Rs 9-13 to Rs 10-110.

The bench took strong exception to MMOPL's decision to hike the fares without any consideration for the citizens. "In order to ease out the pressure on the existing infrastructure i.e. the local trains and BEST buses, or even on the congested public roads, the metro project was envisaged. Because of this purpose, construction was permitted on/above public roads and public properties," the bench said. "Public property is leased at a nominal rent of Re 1 for the metro project. The metro project is expected to cater to the different class of commuters," the bench said.

Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, current affairs from Mumbai, local news, crime news and breaking headlines here

Download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get updates on all the latest and trending stories on the go