NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on today, April 3,  urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to restore the fare concessions offered to senior citizens by the Inidian railways.

CM Kejriwal said in a letter to the prime minister dated April 1 that extending the concession to older citizens would cost the center's budget of Rs.45 lakh crore Rs.1600 crore."  By discounting the facility a message was being given to senior citizens that the government did not care for them which was against the culture of the country, Kejriwal said, adding that no person, society or country can progress without the blessings of the elderly.  

He described the amount as a drop in the ocean and said the government will not become rich by not spending the amount. “It is not about the money. It is about the intention. The Delhi government will not become poor by spending Rs.50 crore out of its Rs.70,000 crore budget, on the Tirth Yatra. The Centre plans to spend Rs.45 lakh crore this fiscal. Of that, 1,600 crore is just a drop in the ocean. By spending or saving this amount, the Centre will not become richer or poorer,"

The Delhi CM stated in the letter that the blessings of the elderly, whose free trip to religious sites has been arranged, have helped the national capital advance in all sectors.

Males 60 years of age or older used to receive a 40% fare discount from the Indian Railways, and women received a 50% discount if they were at least 58 years old. The Mail/Express/Rajdhani/Shatabdi/Duranto group of trains offered these discounts in all tariff classes, however, they were removed on March 20, 2020.

A parliamentary standing committee has suggested, on March 13, that the senior citizen fare discount provided by the trains prior to the coronavirus pandemic be reinstated. The proposal was made in the report on the request for grants that was presented to both Houses of Parliament by the Standing Committee on Railways, which is chaired by BJP MP Radha Mohan Singh. The identical recommendation had been made in a prior report. The Committee said that from the info furnished by the Indian Railways, the Covid-19 situation has now been normalised and the national transporter has achieved normal growth.

Kejriwal again raised questions on the educational qualification of PM Modi.

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