MiD DAY finds that fares to five busiest domestic destinations have returned to affordable levels
MiD DAY finds that fares to five busiest domestic destinations have returned to affordable levels
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FLYERS are heaving a sigh of relief with airfares, which had skyrocketed in November-December, getting restored to affordable levels.
MiD DAY checked the airfares for five of the busiest domestic destinations from Mumbai and found that fares for tickets booked even one or two days prior to departure for the January-February busy season do not pinch the pocket.
According to the authorities, CAEAC has played a pivotal role in making the airfares affordable
For a traveller wanting to fly out to Delhi from the city on February 1 and wanting to return the next day, the return fare yesterday was between Rs 5,500 and Rs 7,500 (see box). The fare to Bangalore for the same dates was between Rs 6,567 and Rs 7,628.
"Yes, the fares are far cheaper now. In fact, when we tell our clients what the fare is, they think we are joking," said Saurabh Kumar, a travel agent from Andheri.
R Desikan, trustee, Consumer Association of India, who is also a special invitee to the Civil Aviation Economic Advisory Council (CAEAC), said, "I think the fares are traveller-friendly now. I believe the decisions taken by CAEAC have played a pivotal role in this.
The council created a certain amount of pressure for the airlines and they realised that the government will not tolerate exorbitant fares."
Sources close to the Civil Aviation Ministry revealed that the airlines are keeping the airfares low also because they don't want to antagonise the new civil aviation minister, Vayalar Ravi. He had expressed concern about exorbitant fares within hours of taking up the portfolio.
MiD DAY Impact
MiD DAY was the first to report on airfares touching an all-time high on November 13.
MiD Day revisited the fares on November 23 and found that they were still the same.
After the reports, the DGCA issued a circular to all airlines to ensure transparency in fares.
The circular asked airlines to furnish a copy of the route-wise tariff across its network in various fare categories, in the manner it is offered in
the market, to DGCA on the first day of every calendar month.
The airfares came down by nearly 30-35 per cent following the Civil Aviation Ministry and DGCA's intervention.
Fares at a Glance
Sectoru00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0 Return fareu00a0u00a0u00a0
(from Mumbai)
Delhiu00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0Rs.5 - 7.5K
Kolkatau00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0Rs8.9 -10.7K
Bangaloreu00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0Rs6.5 - 7.6K
Goau00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0Rs4.1 - 5.8K
Chennaiu00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0Rs7.6 - 8.5K
(Fares for departure date: Feb 1, return: Feb 2 as of yesterday. Data taken from various travel websites)
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