The Pakistan Railways has increased fares for inter-city passenger trains by up to 20 percent, applicable from Thursday, according to a notification issued on Monday. The notification said that all intercity mail express and non-stop trains’ fares would increase by 20 percent. According to sources, the train fares have been revised due to increasing fuel prices in the international market. The railways administration has directed all commercial assistants, station superintendents, stationmasters and station managers to prominently display the revised fares immediately. Pakistan Railways Information Technology Department has been directed to make arrangements to incorporate the change at the computerised reservation offices of the organisation. A senior officer of the Railways said that only five passenger trains were running in the entire network, so the mail and nonstop trains’ passengers would bear the major impact of the increase. Railways Public Relations Director Abdul Hamid Razi said the organisation had to increase the fares after rise in fuel prices, adding that the prices had increased by 180 percent during the past few years.
