Top up metro card for Rs 3K

Regular metro riders who find it tedious to recharge their smart cards every now and then can breathe a sigh of relief as the BMRCL has raised the maximum limit for top-up from Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,000.

With the number of long-distance  commuters going up, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has revised the recharge limits with effect from Saturday.

"The existing maximum storage value of Rs 1,500 is inadequate for performing journeys between endpoints during a month," the circular notes.

The raising of storage value will help commuters avoid standing in queues for multiple recharges within a month.

The move has, however, a flip side as those losing  the card will not be able to recover the money unless the card is bought online with full authentication.

BMRCL officials said most smart cards in use were those bought over the counter. "Users will not have details of their cards and hence can't block them. Once lost, they will lose the stored value. We encourage people to buy cards online so that even if the card is lost, the amount can be recovered," an official said.

The revision in the storage value, however, does not apply to online recharges.