Bangladesh Passengers' Welfare Association yesterday urged the government not to increase public transport fare giving the gas price hike as an excuse.

Already a chaotic situation is prevailing in the public transport sector as bus operators usually charge more than the government-set fare, claimed Mozammel Hoque Chowdhury, secretary general of the association.

Besides, the government-set fare chart does not fit the quality of bus service in the capital. Most of the buses in the city are unfit, he said.

He was addressing a rally in front of Jatiya Press Club.

"In such a situation we demand that the government not increase the fare for the sake of limited income people," he said. The association also demanded that the government set up an effective mechanism to stop bus operators charging additional fare.

Expressing solidarity, noted columnist Syed Abul Maksud, leaders and representatives of different political and social organisations attended the function.

Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) announced the new tariff structure on Thursday that stated the price of per cubic meter of CNG would be Tk 35 from Tk 30.

Following that, private bus operators on Sunday sent a proposal to the road transport and bridges ministry to increase fare of bus passengers in Dhaka and Chittagong cities. According to the government-fixed fare chart, a minibus passenger has to pay Tk 1.5 while a bus passenger Tk 1.6 for travelling a kilometre. Long-route bus passengers pay Tk 1.45 for the same distance.