Preneeta Sharma
₹2 “T.Tax” Charge Raises Questions Over HRTC Fare Collection; Government’s Own Notification Under Question
Shimla
A seemingly routine HRTC ticket has raised a serious question over the implementation of the Himachal Pradesh government’s own fare notification. While the Transport Department’s notification states that the prescribed maximum fares are “inclusive of all taxes,” an HRTC ticket for the Dharampur–Shoghi route shows an additional ₹2 collected under “T.Tax.”
The 50-km journey carries an HP Fare of ₹125, but the passenger was charged another ₹2 as “T.Tax”, along with ₹2 towards insurance and ₹1 under charges, taking the total fare to ₹130.
The issue is not the amount but it is the authority behind the collection.
If the government has already notified fares as inclusive of all taxes, why is HRTC adding a separate tax component to the passenger’s bill? Has the government issued any subsequent order authorising this collection? If yes, why is that authority not transparently reflected on the ticket? And if no such order exists, who authorised HRTC to collect the additional amount?
The contradiction puts the government and its transport corporation in an uncomfortable position. A government notification cannot say one thing while a government-owned transport service appears to collect money on another basis.
For an ordinary passenger, there is no way to determine whether the additional ₹2 is legally applicable or simply another unexplained charge. The responsibility for transparency lies with the government,not with the passenger.
The government must publicly clarify whether HRTC’s fare collection system is fully compliant with the Transport Department’s notified fare structure.
₹2 may appear insignificant on a single ticket. But multiplied across thousands of passengers and countless journeys, even a small unexplained charge can translate into a substantial collection.
The bigger question is therefore unavoidable: If “all taxes” are already included in the notified fare, why is HRTC charging passengers again and who is accountable for it?
