CTI flags 50 pc rise in airfares ahead of Chhath Puja, wedding season; seeks fare cap

New Delhi: The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) has written to Union Civil Aviation Minister, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, urging the government to take immediate steps to regulate rising airfares and put a stop to what it described as arbitrary pricing by airlines.

The trade body has demanded that the government introduce an upper cap on airfares, alleging that ticket prices have surged by nearly 50 per cent in the last 15 days, making air travel increasingly unaffordable for the common people during the Chhath festival and the upcoming wedding season.

CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal said that the sharp increase in airfares was affecting not only businesspeople but also middle-class families and ordinary passengers who were planning to travel during the festive and wedding seasons.

Goyal said the wedding season is scheduled to begin on November 20, while the Chhath festival is already underway. Millions of people want to travel to their hometowns to celebrate the festival and attend weddings, but the steep rise in ticket prices is forcing many to reconsider their travel plans. According to a survey conducted by the CTI, airfares on several routes from Delhi have nearly doubled compared to their levels a few days ago. The current fares include Rs 18,000 for Delhi-Patna, Rs 20,000 for Delhi-Darbhanga, Rs 15,000 for Delhi-Mumbai, Rs 16,000-Rs 18,000 for Delhi-Bengaluru, Rs 11,000 for Delhi-Ahmedabad and Rs 11,000-Rs 15,000 for Delhi-Hyderabad.

Goyal said these routes had much lower fares just a few days ago, adding that the sudden increase was putting an additional financial burden on passengers, particularly those travelling with families.

The CTI has put forward five demands to the Civil Aviation Ministry to address the issue. First, it has sought immediate government intervention to regulate airfares and prevent airlines from charging excessively during festivals and the wedding season.

Second, it has demanded an upper fare cap on every route to ensure that no airline charges passengers beyond a prescribed maximum limit. Third, the organisation has called for a transparent fare-fixing mechanism based on distance and kilometres travelled. It said ticket prices should reflect the distance covered, as flights operating over 500 km and 1,500 km cannot be charged at similar rates.

Fourth, the CTI has urged the government to increase flight frequency on high-demand routes, particularly Delhi-Patna, Delhi-Darbhanga, Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Bengaluru.

Lastly, it has called for the introduction of two to three new airlines in the country to promote competition in the aviation sector and provide passengers with more affordable travel options.