The ministry of civil aviation on Saturday capped airfares to check a surge in prices following a breakdown in services of the country’s largest carrier, IndiGo. In an order, the government asked airlines not to charge passengers over Rs 7,500 for distances up to 500 km, Rs 12,000 for 500-1,000 km, Rs 15,000 for 1,000-1,500 km, and Rs 18,000 for distances above 1,500 km for economy tickets.
New Fare Limits
The order said these fare limits will apply until airfares stabilise or until further review, and are valid for all types of bookings, whether through airlines’ official websites or online agents. Airlines have also been instructed to maintain ticket availability across all fare buckets and to consider capacity enhancement on sectors showing high demand to manage the surge in fares. The fare caps, which exclude applicable charges, do not apply to business class seats or UDAN flights, the ministry said in its order. The ministry order stated: “The ministry will keep a close eye on fare levels using real-time data and direct communication with airlines.”
Strict Deadline
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 pm on Sunday, December 7. 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.
IndiGo’s flight cancellations continued on Saturday, but the airlines said the number of cancelled flights reduced to less than 850, while over a 1,000 flights were cancelled Friday. As per data shared with FE, Delhi saw the highest disruptions with 106 cancellations, followed by Bengaluru with 124 cancellations, Mumbai with 109, and Hyderabad with 66 cancelled flights.
“IndiGo is working determinedly to bring its operations back on track across the network. Our teams are focused on stabilising schedules, reducing delays, and supporting customers through this period,” the airline said in a statement. Indigo said it expects the situation to improve progressively over the next few days. “We would also take this moment to thank all IndiGo employees and ground staff for their tireless support and commitment to our customers. IndiGo sincerely apologises for the inconvenience caused to our customers and remains focused on restoring normalcy across our operations at the earliest,” the airline added.