The Ministry of Civil Aviation on Saturday set upper caps on airfares to control the surge in ticket prices due to the breakdown in IndiGo’s flight services, and many passengers gathered outside airports in Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai
The country’s largest airline, IndiGo, faced further flight disruptions on Saturday, cancelling over 400 flights at four major airports.
Of these cancellations, Delhi accounted for 106 cancellations, including 54 departures and 52 arrivals, Bengaluru airport accounted for 124 flights—63 departures and 61 arrivals, Mumbai saw 109 cancellations, including 51 departures and 58 arrivals, while Hyderabad saw 66 cancelled flights, government airport officials told FE.
IndiGo’s flight cancellations have caused a significant increase in fares on popular routes in India over the last three days, with other domestic airlines.
Government Intervenes to Control ‘Opportunistic Pricing’
In response, the government announced it would set fare limits to keep pricing fair in the market, though specific details on those limits were not provided. The Indian government stated, “The Ministry will keep a close eye on fare levels using real-time data and direct communication with airlines,” MoCA said in a statement.
The ministry has sent an official directive to all airlines, requiring them to follow the newly set fare caps. These caps will stay in place until things return to normal. The goal of this directive is to keep prices fair in the market, preventing any exploitation of travellers in need. It aims to ensure that people who need to travel urgently—such as senior citizens, students, and patients—aren’t faced with financial strain during this time.
MoCA has also directed IndiGo to clear all pending passenger refunds without delay. The Ministry has mandated that the refund process for all cancelled or disrupted flights must be fully completed by 8:00 PM on Sunday, 7 December 2025.
Airlines have also been instructed not to levy any rescheduling charges for passengers whose travel plans were affected by cancellations. The Ministry has clarified that any delay or non-compliance in refund processing will invite immediate regulatory action.
“To ensure seamless grievance redressal, IndiGo has been instructed to set up dedicated passenger support and refund facilitation cells. These cells have been tasked to proactively contact affected passengers and ensure that refunds and alternative travel arrangements are processed without the need for multiple follow-ups. The system of automatic refunds will remain active until operations stabilise completely,” the government said in a statement.
Operational Strain
IndiGo’s flight cancellations continued on Saturday, despite the airline receiving temporary relief from new court-mandated pilot duty and rest regulations just a day earlier.
Earlier this week, IndiGo acknowledged that it did not plan effectively for the stricter night flying and weekly rest rules set to begin on November 1. This oversight has caused scheduling issues this week. As a result, over 1,000 flights were cancelled on Friday. However, with the government granting temporary exemptions, IndiGo announced that it expects to resume normal operations between December 10 and 15.