The Indian Railways has refused to share how it calculates fares for different train classes, calling it a “trade secret.” A petition filed under the Right to Information Act asked for details on the methodology used to set base fares. The Chief Public Information Officer (CPIO) said fare classification and methodology are protected by trade secret and intellectual property rights. Therefore, disclosing this information is not in the public interest. After the petitioner appealed, the Railway Board’s Director of Rates explained, “Indian Railways is run as a commercial utility, but also has social obligations.” He added, “Profit if any is distributed to common man and is not retained for the benefit of personal gain as in the case of private enterprise.” The refusal was upheld under Section 8(1)(d) of the RTI Act. The CPIO shared the latest base fare structure, which took effect from December 26, 2025. The Central Information Commission agreed, stating the CPIO’s role is to provide information from existing records, not to create new information to please petitioners. The commission found the railways’ reply lawful. Recently, Indian Railways announced increased fares, including higher pricing for new Vande Bharat sleeper trains compared to Mail/Express and Super Fast trains, according to railway sources.