Hyderabad: Eleven BRS MLAs representing constituencies under the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits have written to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy demanding immediate withdrawal of the recent Hyderabad Metro fare hike.
In the letter, the legislators warned that the decision would impose a significant financial burden on Hyderabad’s commuters. They said the move was regressive, particularly in a city witnessing rapid growth and daily dependence on Metro services by lakhs of employees, students and ordinary citizens.
The MLAs reminded that the Hyderabad Metro was launched during the BRS government to serve as an affordable mass transit option. The fare hike, introduced by the Congress government, they said, directly affects lower and middle-income groups who rely on Metro trains for daily travel.
They pointed to rising prices of petrol, diesel and essential commodities under both the Congress-led state and BJP-led central governments, arguing that doubling the minimum Metro fare from ₹10 to ₹20 would add ₹500 to ₹600 to monthly commuting costs for average passengers.
Public transport, they argued, must be supported by subsidies as done in international cities like Singapore, Berlin and Tokyo. Any responsible government, they said, has a duty to ensure accessible and low-cost transit options. The current policy, they claimed, threatens to dismantle Hyderabad’s urban transport framework.