Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers’ stir jacks up city, Delhi flight fares

Tribune News ServiceMohali, December 7The farmers’ protest on the Singhu border, which is on the Chandigarh-Delhi road, has forced travellers to go for air travel to reach the national capital. This has resulted in an increase in the air fares besides increasing the occupancy of the flights by 30 to 40 per cent.According to information, tricity residents were booking air tickets only in the case of emergency and avoiding visit to the state capital due to the increase in the air fare by private airlines.A cursory look at the pages of major online travel agencies showed that fares for travel from Delhi to Chandigarh on December 8 have increased to Rs15,700, which is double the price of a ticket for a Delhi-Mumbai flight. The price of a ticket for the Delhi-Mumbai flight for December 8 starts at Rs6,219. The Delhi-Mumbai route has been traditionally the busiest in the country.Air India, IndiGo, Vistara and GoAir operate flights between the city and New Delhi.Air India Chandigarh manager MR Jindal said there was an increase in the passenger traffic due to the farmers’ protest. He said their aircraft were running full, adding that they charged the fare as per the directions of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.A spokesman of the Chandigarh International Airport Authority of India Limited said there was an increase in the passenger footfall at the airport due to the farmers’ protest.It is pertinent to mention here that farmers have been at the Delhi border since November 27, protesting the newly enacted farm laws. The farmers are demanding that the ‘pro-corporate’ laws be repealed. Various meetings between farmer leaders and Central ministers have failed to resolve the issue.

The Tribune

2020-12-08