Indigo flight chaos: Govt monitoring airfares, says Aviation Minister

Amid the IndiGo flight chaos, Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu said in Rajya Sabha on Monday (December 15) that the government is taking the high airfares very seriously and is determined to prevent opportunistic pricing. Naidu further stated tariff monitoring unit of DGCA is being strengthened, and more routes, including international ones, are being monitored.

‘Govt monitoring more routes’

Speaking during the Question Hour, the Civil Aviation Minister said that the surge in airfares is generally because it is a deregulated sector. He said in air travel, many stakeholders are involved, including CISF.

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But, the government makes an effort that passengers do not face any problems at every touchpoint to ensure that air travel is smooth, he noted.

"The ministry is taking it (airfares) seriously. Tariff monitoring unit of DGCA is being further strengthened. We are monitoring more domestic routes and even international routes. The government wants to prevent the opportunistic pricing situation," said Naidu.

‘Airfare spike linked to demand’

Elaborating further, Naidu said that the surge in air prices is generally because it is a deregulated sector and there is a mismatch in the demand and supply, adding that when the demand becomes too high, then the prices tend to rise.

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As for the capping of airfares by the government in the wake of the IndiGo flight chaos, Naidu said that since IndiGo is a major airline, the curtailment of its operations resulted in huge disruptions and cancellations, which resulted in rising airfares.

"So generally the other side of the trend would be a rise in airfares. That is exactly why we have to keep the airfares very reasonable and affordable...so we have capped the prices,” added Naidu.

'Govt engaging with stakeholders’

He said airfares may also rise because of other reasons, which the ministry closely observes and continuously engages with stakeholders to keep them in check.

"Whenever there might be a situation...we from the ministry are taking action. I can give you other examples also, during Kumbh mela, we have done it, during Pahalgam incident we have done it, during COVID also we have done it. So, whenever there might be a situation when airfares might rise, the ministry is acting upon it and taking necessary action," the minister said.