Staff Correspondent

Although Bangladesh Railway (BR) will incur more losses due to the fuel price hike, its authorities will not increase railway fare for now, considering public opinion.

“We are not considering to raise train fare for now,” Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan told The Daily Star yesterday.

However, authorities have asked BR to assess the impact of the fuel price hike on railway operations, Sujan said.

On November 3, the government hiked diesel and kerosene prices by 23 percent, or by Tk 15 per litre, to cut losses of Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation, following the global rise of fuel prices.

After the strike of transport associations centring the hike, the government on Sunday raised bus and launch fares by up to 28 and 43 percent, respectively.

BR sources said trains are facing a huge pressure of passengers, after the hike of bus fare, which is likely to increase in the coming days, creating trouble for the railway.

Trains are run by diesel-run locomotives, so the operation cost of BR will increase further, which will ultimately increase