Four days after the government announced a hike in bus fare, Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy on Saturday said the decision had been put on hold.
Talking to reporters at the end of a meeting with MLAs belonging to the ruling Congress, the DMK and the AIADMK here, he announced that a committee under Revenue and Transport Minister M.O.H.F. Shahjahan had been constituted to go into the fare structure.
Mr. Narayanasamy said he had already received a memorandum from the DMK seeking rollback of the fare hike.
The AIADMK also sought immediate withdrawal of the hike. The panel will take feedback from the MLAs, leaders of political parties, bus owners and the public and submit its report in three months. Until then the bus operators would continue to levy the earlier fare, he said. The Government had the right to fix the minimum fare structure, he said.
Legislators from the AINRC were not present at the meeting. The government on October 17 issued a notification and revised the bus fares of town service buses, stage carriages, express stage carriages and night service buses, triggering strong protests from public and political parties.
Cadres of the AIADMK and the BJP organised separate rallies to protest the hike.
The government adopted the fare revision mechanism suggested by MS DIMTS which had prepared the Comprehensive Mobility Plan for Puducherry.
The fares were revised after five-and-a-half years.