[IAC#RG] PUBLIC NOTICE dt. 14.June.2016 inre 4th Fare Fixation Committee for DMRC

To:

Hon'ble Justice M.L.Mehta

Chairperson

4th Fare Fixation Committee

c/o Delhi Metro Rail Corporation

cc:

1) Shri Durga Shankar Mishra ji (Member)

2) Shri K.K.Sharma ji (Member)

BY EMAIL

Sub: Request for Transparency in your Committee

Dear Sirs,

I refer to the public notice dated 14.June.2016 issued from your Commiittee, and also to certain of my earlier correspondences with DMRC concerning The Fare Fixation Committee (Procedure) Rules, 2003 published in Notification No. S.O. 1074 (E) in Gazette of India dated the 18th  September, 2003 or thereabouts.

The nation is now under a regime of "Right to Information" requiring considerably more public discloure and transparency than in the past so that citizens can participate in public consultation processes with complete information, and unlike the secretive and ad-hoc ways the DMRC fares were fixed previously.

Accordingly, I have noted from the public notice that public comments are sought on the proposal for revision of existing fare structures of DMRC in Delhi and its extensions in NCR. However, strangely the proposal itself is apparently not in the public domain so that citizens can properly respond to it. I would therefore SUGGEST that your Hon'ble Commission may kindly communicate the proposal itself which is under examination and alongwith all its annexures to the undersigned, so that I and my fellow citizens can participate properly before your Honour and with sufficent time to do so instead of in this hurried and secretive fashion.

I may also mention that I am given to understand that DMRC, like many other PSUs adminstratively under the Ministry of Urban Development, has been the subject of many adverse audit reports since the 3rd FFC reccomendations were made. I therefore also SUGGEST that all the audit reports, and especially the preliminary audit reports of the concerned agencies, concerning DMRC covering past 8 years are shared with us so that we can respond / commend / suggest.

In the interim, kindly find a few of my broad personal observations / suggestions as a metro rail commuter

1) That I believe that DMRC is making vast profits which are inadequately reported and accounted for. Correspondingly, I object to any suggestions that DMRC is a loss-making entity or struggling to break-even and therefore its fares deserve to be raised..

2) That I believe that DMRC fares can be reduced by at least 300% considering

a) That its coaches nowadays are always over-crowded and running at 300% to 400% of their capacity and with  frequencies approaching 2.5 minutes during peak hours.

b) That the DMRC gets vast amounts of land at a pittance of Rs.1 on 99 year leases for property development. I say that such anti-public grants / subsidies do not encourage DMRC to run in an efficient and competitive manner and the DMRC property development division is a notoriously corrupt and opaque division. I therefore suggest that DMRC's special status and leases and subsidies should be abolished and it should stand on an equal footing with any other private property developer to ensure internal efficiency.

c) The customer services provided by DMRC are unfriendly and shocking and far below the standards present in any decent Railway network. For instance, the DMRC is extorting and gouging monies from their captive customers to provide even essential basics like drinking water and toilet facilities. A bottle of packaged drinking water which costs about Rs. 6 in bulk is being sold at prices of around Rs. 30 per bottle (and that to of some dubious brands).

d) DMRC gets vastly subsidised electricty from DISCOMS at DERC's directions. As a result there is no incentive for DMRC to be energy efficient. Vast amounts of cheap electricty are being squandered and wasted in DMRC offices and stations and yards. Improving the energy efficiency is capable of greatly reducing tariffs.

e) There is no acountability / transparency on so-called reduction of fares in Airport Express line. It is not clear to me how the DMRC administration could repeatedly reduce fares on this line without any recommendation from the Fare Fixation Committee. The fact that fares fixed in 2009 by 3rd FFC for Airport Express line have been reduced by about 300% from Rs. 200 to Rs. 50 between Dwarka Sector 21 and New Delhi immediately upon Aam Aadmi Party coming to power in Delhi tends to show that the 3rd FFC was a vastly corrupt Committee which has enabled DMRC, and certain parties in power in Centre to loot and strip the citizens of Delhi via the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.

f) That the DMRC has cut corners everywhere on safety and safety related items and the frquency of safety related incidents are going unreported due to rampant corruption in DMRC and Ministry of Urban Development. I suggest that operation of DMRC be fully handed over to Railway Ministry and taken out of the clutches of Ministry of Urban Development so that fares can be drastically reduced. It is an open secret that the rampant corruption and general incomptence in Ministry of Urban Development is causing DMRC to be operated in a completely unprofessional, inefficent and corrupt manner.

g) That monthly and seasonal passes should be maded available as is done in Mumbai for loacl rail commuters. The cost of regularly travelling on DMRC is at least 8 to 10 times the cost on Mumbai local trains with passes.

h) That there should be complete transparency in accounts / legal cases of disputes DMRC is having with various persons.

Accordingly, I shall respond in considerable detail once your Hon'ble Committe ensures my Right to Information through urgent suo-moto discloure by DMRC / MoUD.

In these circumstances, I SUGGEST that at least 30 days is allowed for citizens to respond after they have been properly informed and that date for public response be extended to at least 31 July 2016.

NB: I would also like to appear in person before the Hon'ble Committee.

sincerely

Er. Sarbajit Roy

National Convenor

INDIA AGAINST CORRUPTION, jan andolan

Address:
B-59 Defence Colony

New Delhi 110024

TEL : +91-8010205897

WEB : http://indiaagainstcorruption.org.in