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Bhubaneswar, Dec 17: With diesel price going down by `2 a couple of days back, the State government is mulling to revise the bus fares once again within the next three days.
Speaking to Orissa POST, state transport minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi said, “We will announce a revision in bus fare in the next two or three days.” “We were close to announcing a revised bus fare, however, in the meantime, the Centre has again declared a further cut in the diesel price by `2. So, we are revising the fares once again and the reduced bus fare will be declared soon,” Majhi assured.
Sources in the transport department said the Technical Advisory Committee which decides on the fare revision will hold its meeting in a day or two following which the revised rate is likely to be announced.
With the Centre announcing a cut in the diesel prices, the overall diesel price has come down by around `8 in the last two and a half months and the price now stands at `54.33 per litre.
However, despite the reduction, the bus fare has remained as high as 62 paisa per kilometre compared to what it used to be during the corresponding period two years ago which was around 55 to 57 paise, sources said.
In view of the fluctuating diesel prices, private bus owners’ association had earlier proposed an automated fair regulatory mechanism to regulate bus fare.
The transport minister said, “Currently the proposal is under examination. We will find out the feasibility of the system and then take a decision for its introduction. It will take some time.”