Railwaymen threaten agitation against any rollback

Supporting the fare hike, five Railway employee unions today threatened to launch an agitation against any possible rollback.

In a letter to Prime Minister, they have sought his intervention to ensure that the fare proposal in the railway budget is not withdrawn.

"We request you to kindly intervene and take steps that the fares hike proposal is not rolled back without providing matching support to the Indian Railways from the general exchequer," Railway unions wrote.

Coming out strongly in support of the fare hike, railway unions - AIRF, NFIR, IRPOF, FROA, IRPOF - voiced their concern over the "politicisation" of fare hike.

Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi has earned the wrath of his party chief Mamata Banerjee for proposing a fare hike in the Rail Budget. Railways had hike fares in 2003 and since then no Railway Minister had touched them.

The employees claimed that the Railway Minister has been made a scapegoat for his decision on fare hike.

"We are expressing our deep sense of anguish for making the Railway Minister a scapegoat for his justified decision in the interest of railways and the nation."

"14 lakh railwaymen are upset over politicisation of the Railway Minister's fares hike announcement when the whole nation knows that such hike is warranted for ensuring safe, secured and smooth functioning of the system," the letter to the PM said.

The unions urged that politics should not be allowed when the Indian Railway's agenda is aimed at providing more efficient services to the people.