The Centre on Saturday cracked down on what it called “opportunistic pricing” by airlines, after airfares surged sharply across several routes amid IndiGo’s nationwide operational collapse.
With the crisis
stretching into its fifth day and hundreds of flights cancelled across major airports, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said it had issued immediate directives to cap fares to protect passengers from being overcharged.
In a formal statement, the ministry said it had taken “serious note of unusually high airfares” being levied during the ongoing disruption.
“To safeguard passengers from any form of opportunistic pricing, the Ministry has invoked its regulatory powers to ensure fair and reasonable fares across all affected routes,” it said, adding that all airlines have been instructed to strictly comply with the newly prescribed caps until operations stabilise.
The government said the move was essential to maintain pricing discipline and prevent exploitation at a time when thousands of travellers, including senior citizens, students and medical passengers, are struggling to secure seats after widespread cancellations.
Officials also said fare levels will now be monitored in real time, with both airlines and online travel platforms under scrutiny.
“Any deviation from the prescribed norms will invite immediate corrective action,” the ministry warned.
The intervention comes as IndiGo’s crisis deepened on Saturday, triggering one of the biggest single-day disruptions in recent years.
Mumbai recorded the highest impact with 109 cancellations, while Delhi followed with 86 scrapped departures, heavily straining India’s two busiest airports.
The ripple effect was felt across other major hubs, Hyderabad logged 69 cancellations, Bengaluru 50, Pune 42, and Chennai around 30. Ahmedabad reported 19 cancellations as shortages continued to hit operations.
With IndiGo, which normally runs about 2,300 flights a day, still hamstrung by pilot shortages and planning lapses, aviation authorities said the situation remains “under close watch”, and a full recovery is not expected immediately.
