Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi, who is facing opposition from within his own party for proposing a hike in passenger fare in the Rail Budget, on Thursday got support from the Railway Unions which lauded his initiative and refused to accept a rollback.

In an appeal to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a federation of railway employees said the hike in rail fare was long overdue and they would not accept any rollback in it.

"All the federations of the Indian Railway staff and officers whole heartedly support the fare hike announced by Dinesh Trivedi," General Secretary of All India Railwaymens Federation Shiv Gopal Mishra said.

The federation also made it clear that it does not agree to any attempt to roll back the proposed fare hike saying it will adversely impact not only rail safety but also financial stability and sustainability of the railways.

"Rollback without matching subsidy from the general exchequer will push the Indian Railways to the brink of collapse," they said.

Other railway federations like the National Federation of Indian Railwaymen, Federation of Railway Officers Association and All India RPF Association and Indian Railway Promotee Officers Federation also supported the Rail Budget of Dinesh Trivedi.

The federations had strongly favoured hike in passenger fare earlier too, fearing that the railways could go the Air India way as there was no move to improve its financial health.

The federation said the increase was not only long overdue, but also modest in its impact.

"The Rail Budget is also replete with agenda on safety and modernization of the railways which will ultimately offer safe, secure and smooth travelling," the federation said. PTI ARU SGI AD