Title - Local business community feels the heat

Ludhiana : Local business community is up against the 25 per cent hike in parcel and luggage charges by the Railways, as it sends parcels comprising hosiery goods, tyres, pharmaceuticals, flour and pulses in abundance to various parts of the country.“Twenty five percent hike in one go is too much. The input cost is already going up and on top of it the freight charges will put an extra burden on hosiery manufacturers. We are already bearing huge losses as parcels are reaching their respective destinations late. Now, we will have to pay 25 per cent extra,” said Vinod Thapar, chairman, Knitwear Club.Aadesh Singla, who regularly receives tyres and other goods for his company from Bangalore, said companies sending the parcels would pass the increased cost to the customers now. “The government should have done it in installments rather than increasing it at one go,” he added.However, the hike will not be applicable to 19 special parcel trains. There are three types of parcel rates-Standard, Premium and Rajdhani. Standard rates are applicable on goods booked in parcel service of non-express trains while Premium rates are charged in express and mail trains. Goods booked in Rajdhani and Shatabdi are charged Rajdhani rate.Earlier, Standard rate was Rs 1.31 per 10 kg for 50 kilometer and now it has become Rs 1.61 for the same weight and distance after the hike. Premium rate was hiked from Rs 2.63 per 10 kilogram for 50 kilometer to Rs 3.28 while Rajdhani rate was Rs 3.93 kilometer which has been increased to Rs 4.92 for the same category of distance and weight.

Revenue Generated
The Railways plans to mop up Rs 370 crore as additional revenue in the current fiscal. The Railways have earned Rs 1,600 crore from parcel and luggage in 2011-12. The rates of parcel and luggage have been revised after six years.