Overview
- Speaking in Lok Sabha, Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu said the Centre will cap fares only in extraordinary situations and will otherwise keep the market deregulated to sustain sector growth.
- Distance‑based economy fare ceilings remain in force after IndiGo’s cancellations: up to Rs 7,500 (≤500 km), Rs 12,000 (500–1,000 km), Rs 15,000 (1,000–1,500 km) and Rs 18,000 (>1,500 km), excluding UDF, PSF and taxes and not covering business class or RCS‑UDAN.
- The DGCA has created a Tariff Monitoring Unit to track pricing against declared tariff sheets and has stepped up supervisory action following the surge in fares.
- A three‑month fixed‑fare pilot at state‑run Alliance Air is underway to assess consumer benefits, with the ministry indicating it could study similar models for private carriers after feedback.
- Identifying aircraft availability as a key constraint, the minister said discussions include HAL’s MoU on Sukhoi’s SJ‑100 technology transfer and talks with Embraer to enable aircraft manufacturing in India.