The Indian government has stepped in with emergency regulatory measures to control spiralling airfares, as the operational crisis at budget carrier IndiGo stretches into its fifth consecutive day. Invoking special powers, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has mandated fare caps on all affected routes to shield passengers from exorbitant pricing.
Government Steps In With Fare Caps
On Saturday, the Centre took serious note of the unusually high ticket prices triggered by massive flight cancellations. In an official statement, the MoCA announced it had invoked its regulatory authority to ensure fair and reasonable fares across all impacted routes. This decisive move aims to protect travellers from any form of opportunistic pricing during the ongoing aviation turmoil.
The ministry has issued a directive to all airlines, instructing them to strictly adhere to the newly prescribed fare limits. These caps will remain in force until the situation in the domestic aviation sector stabilises completely. The primary goal is to maintain pricing discipline, prevent passenger exploitation, and ensure those with urgent travel needs are not subjected to undue financial hardship.
"We will continue to monitor fare levels, and any deviation from the prescribed norms will invite immediate coercive action," the ministry stated, warning airlines against non-compliance.
IndiGo Disruption Sends Fares Soaring
The trigger for this government intervention is the prolonged crisis at IndiGo, India's largest private airline. The carrier's operational woes have now entered their fifth day, with normalcy expected only by December 15. The disruption has rippled across the entire domestic network, causing severe capacity shortages.
The situation peaked on Friday, marking the worst day of the crisis, when IndiGo was forced to cancel nearly 1,000 flights. This massive reduction in available seats caused airfares on competing airlines to skyrocket, with tickets on some international routes even briefly surpassing domestic ones due to the intense demand pressure.
Sky-High Fares on Key Routes
As of Saturday, passengers faced staggering prices for last-minute travel. A one-way economy ticket on the busy Delhi-Mumbai route was priced at Rs 21,463. For Sunday travel, the cost jumped even higher to approximately Rs 24,715.
The scenario was even more extreme on the Delhi-Bengaluru sector. A seat for Saturday cost Rs 24,999, while the price for Sunday travel nearly doubled to an astonishing Rs 48,463.
However, there is some relief on the horizon. With the government's fare caps in place and IndiGo working to restore its schedule, prices are predicted to ease significantly in the coming week. Fares on the Delhi-Mumbai route are expected to fall back to the Rs 6,000–10,000 range, while Delhi-Bengaluru tickets should stabilise between Rs 7,000 and Rs 15,000.
The ministry's intervention underscores the severity of the market distortion caused by the IndiGo crisis and its commitment to protecting consumer interests during extraordinary circumstances in the aviation industry.
