Union Budget 2025: Will the Train Fare Concession for Elders Return?
The Union Budget of 2025 has created a lot of hope amongst senior citizens that the dream of accepting concessions on train fares will be over soon. For years, Indian Railways gave a hefty discount of 40-50% on the fare of train services for seniors; this benefit was stopped in the year 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. Now, the seniors are getting excited and can’t wait for the budget of 2025 to see if this dream concession will be reinstated.
What Was The Concession This Senior Citizen Gets In The Train Fare?
Before Covid19 hit India, a senior citizen had the privilege to enjoy a 40% discount on train journeys, applicable to men aged 60 years and above, while women could avail of a 50% discount if she was 58 years or more. This facility, the senior citizens would have had the advantage to travel by several trains comprising Mail, Express, Rajdhani, Shatabdi, and Duronto train services. This kind of concession was a boon for the elders traveling within and across the length and breadth of India.
Why Was It Stopped?
According to the Indian Railways, the annual gathering or turn-out in the senior citizen fare concession on train tickets was withdrawn in March 2020 because of the financial constraints due to the pandemic. It has brought the fate of many senior citizens to just the point. In spite of the steady improvement in the conditions across the land, not a single headway has been made with regard to restoration of the above concession by the government.
What Do Senior Citizens Demand?
Senior citizens contend that they will enjoy a limited source of income post-retirement, and the relaxation in the train fare would ease the travelling expenses. Many hope that the government would, once again, consider their plea for a 50% discount, especially as the Union Budget 2025 is to be presented shortly.
What Does the Government Have to Say?
In the past, the Railway Ministry believed that concessions were removed in order to increase revenues, but it has also promised to consider the repeated restoration requests. Union Budget will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2025; therefore, senior citizens are expecting to see their demands fulfilled in this critical budget spelt out at the start of the Modi government’s third term.
Will Concession Come Back?
A countless number of elderly people is eagerly waiting for their long-anticipated dream to be fulfilled in the upcoming Union Budget 2025. A return of the concession, in all likelihood, would be a huge relief to them by making travel affordable and accessible once again to senior citizens.
If the government decides to bring the concession back, it would benefit all senior citizens by being quite significant relief for traveling purposes again. Thus stay tuned to Daily Dose 360 for more updates about what the Union Budget 2025 will have in store for citizens!
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