Railways suspends senior citizen ticket concession in FY23, earned INR 2,242 cr. more

The Railways has earned approximately INR 2,242 crore in additional revenue in 2022-23 by withdrawing the senior citizen ticket concession, as per an RTI response. The concessions were suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and have remained on hold to date.

In response to an RTI filed by Madhya Pradesh resident Chandra Shekhar Gaur, the Railways disclosed that it did not provide concessions to approximately eight crore senior citizens, comprising 4.6 crore men, 3.3 crore women, and 18,000 transgenders, between April 2022 and March 2023. It also states that the Railways earned INR 5,062 crore in revenue from senior citizen travellers during the period, with INR 2,242 crore of it being additional revenue due to the suspension of the concession.

As per available records, the Railways did not offer a concession to 7.31 crore senior citizen travellers, consisting of 4.46 crore male passengers aged 60 years and above, 2.84 crore female travellers over 58 years old, and 8,310 transgender people, between March 20, 2020, and March 31, 2022. Thus, the railway has witnessed a stable increase in revenue from senior citizen fares. The Railways earned INR 2,891 crore from male senior citizen passengers, INR 2,169 crore from female travellers, and INR 1.03 crore from transgenders in the financial year 2022-23.

Official data reveals that the national transporter bears a significant cost of approximately INR 2,000 crore annually due to the provision of around 53 different types of concessions to different categories of passengers.

All classes offer a 50% concession to senior citizen women, while senior citizen men and transgender passengers can avail a 40% concession. Women must be at least 58 years old to qualify for the concession, while men must be at least 60 years old. The senior citizen concession constitutes roughly 80% of the total discounts granted by the Railways.