Railway withdraws Mela Surcharge
Indian Railways has discontinued Mela Surcharge with effect from December 11, 2018. This surcharge is an extra charge levied on passenger during major festivals in the country. The Railway board has taken this decision ahead of Kumbh Mela 2019 to be held next month in Allahabad. This was also imposed on passengers during Rath Yatra Festival in Puri this year.
Rath Yatris travelling to Odisha to seek Lord Jagannath’s blessings have more reason to rejoice, as Railways has discontinued the Mela Surcharge that was applicable on major fairs and festivals, thereby making travel more affordable for devotees, a famous News paper reported. Details are following.
East Coast Railway source said it imposes this surcharge during Rath Yatra every year. But it will not charge this tax from this year. It had collected around Rs.30 lakh in the form of surcharge from this festival alone.
Official sources said this surcharge was levied on outward tickets issued from Mela stations like Puri during Rath Yatra. Return tickets to Mela station were also taxed. But this surcharge was not levied on single journey tickets issued from various stations on the Indian Railways to the Mela stations.
Surcharge Details
It had charged Rs.5/- and Rs.20/- for second class and sleeper class tickets booked in ordinary and mail or express trains. The ECoR had collected Rs.40/- for AC Chair Car and AC-3 tier tickets, while it had charged Rs.60/- and Rs.80/- for AC-2 tier and AC first class tickets.
Indian Railway launched new Mobile application for Kumb Mela 2019, details are here:- Rail Kumb Seva 2019 Mobile App