New Delhi, Dec 6: IndiGo is in the middle of a major schedule disruption, with close to 900 flights cancelled since Tuesday. The airline is struggling to manage operations due to a shortage of crew and the rollout of revised duty-time norms.
As a result, passengers at key airports including Chennai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Kolkata are facing long waits, packed terminals and increased last-minute fares.
In response to widespread cancellations by IndiGo, the government on Saturday re-imposed airfare caps across all affected routes — the first such intervention since the COVID-19 pandemic. The move comes after days of disruptions that saw hundreds of flights cancelled nationwide, pushing ticket prices on alternate airlines to steep, unaffordable levels.
The directive from the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) mandates that all airlines must strictly comply with the prescribed fare ceilings, warning that any violation will invite immediate action. The caps will remain in force “until the situation stabilises,” officials said.
The disruptions followed the cancellation of over 1,000 flights by IndiGo on Friday, with 550 more scrapped on Thursday. Although the airline’s operations are now “steadily resuming,” a petition has reached the Supreme Court of India seeking intervention for the losses and hardships faced by stranded passengers.