Karnataka bus fare hike: Byrathi Suresh blames rising diesel prices, cites ₹10,200 crore losses

Byrathi Suresh

Defending the Karnataka government’s decision to increase bus fares, Transport Minister Byrathi Suresh on Wednesday attributed the hike to repeated increases in diesel prices by the Union government, rising operational expenses and mounting financial losses.

Explaining the reasons behind the revision, the Minister said the Union government had increased diesel prices seven times since May, resulting in a cumulative increase of ₹10.47 per litre. The repeated fuel price hikes had significantly affected the financial position of the transport corporations, he said.

The four corporations spend nearly 80% of their revenue on diesel and staff-related expenses. Together, they spend approximately ₹15.60 crore every day on diesel, translating into an annual expenditure of ₹5,694 crore.

According to the Minister, the four corporations have collectively accumulated losses of approximately ₹10,200 crore.

Mr. Suresh pointed out that bus fares had been revised only once in the past 10 years, with a 15% increase implemented on January 5, 2025. However, the earlier revision had not been sufficient to offset the continuing rise in operational costs, he said.

He further said that the latest fare revision was necessary to prevent the corporations from slipping further into financial distress, although the increase would only partially help recover their accumulated losses.

Addressing concerns over the financial implications of the Shakti scheme, which provides free bus travel to women in Karnataka, the Minister clarified that the scheme was not responsible for the financial losses incurred by the transport corporations.

Approximately 124.79 lakh passengers travel on buses operated by the four corporations every day, of whom around 74.40 lakh are women travelling free of cost under the scheme.

He said the government periodically reimburses the corporations for the expenditure incurred in providing free travel to women and, therefore, the scheme should not be viewed as a cause of their financial difficulties.

Explaining the revised fare structure, Transport Minister Byrathi Suresh said ordinary bus fares operated by KSRTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC would increase by up to ₹9 for the first five stages, which account for the highest number of passengers. For express services, the maximum increase would be ₹18.

In BMTC services, fares for journeys of up to 2 km have been increased by ₹4, while journeys between 2 km and 4 km will cost ₹6 more. The maximum increase in BMTC fares will be ₹12.

The announcement, however, was marked by confusion during the press conference, with journalists repeatedly seeking clarity on the percentage-wise increase across different services as the Minister explained the revised fares on a stage-wise basis.

When reporters sought a clearer breakdown of the percentage increases, Mr. Suresh asked them to calculate the percentages themselves.