India Is Trying to Make Air Travel Affordable, But How? - India Report

The Indian government has advised airlines to self-regulate and exercise moderation in pricing air tickets, the civil aviation ministry has said. The move has come amid concerns over high airfares, especially during peak periods and festivals. 

Indian minister of state for civil aviation Murlidhar Mohol said that the ministry held consultations with the airline representatives and advised them to keep the interest of passengers in mind when fixing the prices. “The airlines have committed to ensure that airfares do not surge during events such as natural disasters, calamities, etc,” he said.

Civil aviation minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu also promised to probe hikes in airfares.

Soon after taking the post as the new civil aviation minister, Naidu had said that he intended to make air travel affordable, and was working on strategy to keep airfares in check. But Naidu might have face some difficulty in achieving his goals.

Monitoring Airfares in India: India deregulated the aviation sector in 1994, and since then, it neither establishes nor regulates the airfares. Mohol said that the sector was deregulated in most countries of the world. “Deregulation has led to increased competition between airline carriers, leading to decrease in airfare. As a result of deregulation, entry into the airline in