KARACHI, Dec 21: A meeting of representatives of transporters with the EDO transport of the City Government Karachi on Friday decided that fares on urban routes of the city would now be applicable forthwith according to the notification issued on May 4.—app

Earlier, the Sindh government had reduced transport fares on Dec 1. The fares were reduced by one rupee for coaches and 50 paisa for each stage for buses and minibuses. Now students would get a 50 per cent concession in bus fares, our staff reporter adds.

There have been a total reduction of Rs6.37 a litre in diesel price between Oct 1 and Dec 15.

Transport fares were reduced after a meeting of a delegation of the Karachi Transport Ittehad (KTI) with the acting secretary transport Sindh, Nawaz Naseem, on Friday.

Irshad Bokhari, chief of the KTI, urged the secretary to provide a legal cover to the formula agreed between them and the government that if diesel price would be lowered or increased by Rs2, transport fares would be revised accordingly. He said he was told that the formula had been given legal protection and it would soon be endorsed by the chief secretary.

Another group of transporters, the Karachi Transport Federation (KTF), however, said the government had not taken all the transporters into confidence which had created misgivings among them.

Saleem Bangash, chief of the KTF, said the cut in transport fares without reducing the prices of lubricants, spare parts, tyres/tubes, etc., would be detrimental to the interests of transporters. He suggested that fare for the first stage be reduced by 50 paisa and the fares for other stages be not lowered.

The KTF warned the government that if it implemented the decision about cut in fares by consulting only one group of transporters, and if other groups of transporters were forced to accept this decision, then other groups would resist the decision and shut up their business, and the government would be responsible for it.

Since there has been a constant decline in the prices of petrol, oil and lubricants in the past two and a half months, the people had been expressing their resentment at the stubbornness of transporters in effecting a proportionate reduction in transport fares.

Arguments and even violent scuffles between commuters and conductors of public transport vehicles have been taking place in the city. Arguments have been taking place over fares. Commuters wanted cut in fares in accordance with the substantial reduction in POL prices.

The fares will be as under:

Description Fares

Buses (urban routes):

Up to 5 kms Rs3.00

Up to 10 kms Rs4.50

Up to 15 kms Rs5.00

Up to 20 km Rs5.50

Above 20 kms Rs5.50

(Proposed new stage)

Students 50 per cent of normal fare

Minibuses:

Up to 5 kms Rs4.00

Up to 10 kms Rs5.00

Up to 15 kms Rs6.00

Up to 20 kms Rs6.00

and above

Coaches:

Up to 10 kms Rs7.00

Above 10 kms Rs8.00

Inter-city routes:

Metalled roads buses Paisa 30

per km

(50 and above seats)

Kutcha roads buses: Paisa 32

per km

(50 & above seats)

Airconditioned coaches Paisa 60

per km

Minibuses (26-29) seats:

(Metalled) Paisa 30

Per km

Minibuses (13-18) seats:

(Metalled) Paisa 30

per km

Stage-cum-public carriers:

(Desert) Paisa 45

per km