Indian Railways Revises Passenger Fares from July 1: No Hike for Journeys up to 500 Km, Gradual Increase Beyond

NEW DELHI: In a bid to rationalise fares and bolster the financial viability of passenger services, the Ministry of Railways has announced a revised fare structure for train travel across India, effective from July 1, 2025. The new fare schedule, based on the updated Passenger Fare Table issued by the Indian Railway Conference Association (IRCA), introduces a calibrated increase across various classes and distance slabs, while keeping short-distance travel and suburban ticketing untouched.

Crucially, there will be no change in the base fare for ordinary class passengers travelling up to 500 kilometres. For journeys between 501 and 1500 kilometres, the fare will increase by Rs.5, followed by a Rs.10 increase for travel between 1501 and 2500 kilometres, and Rs.15 for distances from 2501 to 3000 kilometres. This modest revision applies to Second Class passengers in non-suburban, ordinary trains.

The sleeper and first-class categories of these trains will also see an incremental hike of half a paisa per kilometre, aligning with the Railways’ broader objective of incremental revenue generation without burdening short-distance travellers.

For Mail and Express trains, including the non-AC Second Class, Sleeper Class, and First Class, the base fare has been raised uniformly by one paisa per kilometre. Air-conditioned coaches in Mail/Express trains—namely AC Chair Car, AC 3-Tier, AC 2-Tier, Executive Class and other variants—will witness a fare increase of two paisa per kilometre.

Premium and special trains such as Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto, Vande Bharat, Tejas, Humsafar, Amrit Bharat, Mahamana, Gatimaan, Antyodaya, Jan Shatabdi, and Yuva Express, along with Anubhuti and Vistadome coaches, will all be governed by this revised class-wise fare regime.

There is no change in ancillary charges, including reservation fees, superfast surcharges, or applicable GST, which will continue under the existing norms. Similarly, the rounding-off principles for fare calculations remain unchanged.

The updated fares will apply only to tickets booked on or after July 1, 2025. Tickets issued before that date will remain valid at their existing rates with no retroactive adjustments. To facilitate a seamless transition, the Ministry has directed all Zonal Railways to update fare displays at stations and ensure that PRS, UTS, and manual ticketing systems are recalibrated in time.

The move is seen as part of Indian Railways’ continued strategy to modernise passenger operations while balancing affordability and cost recovery across its vast network.