India-UK one-way fare skyrockets to ₹4L; IAS officer writes to govt

India-UK one-way fare skyrockets to ₹4L; IAS officer writes to govt

Saurabh.Sinha@timesgroup.com

New Dehi:

India-UK fares have skyrocketed as restrictions on travel imposed from here during the deadly second wave are relaxed from Sunday morning. Senior IAS officer Sanjeev Gupta took to Twitter on Saturday to complain about one-way fares touching Rs 4 lakh and that he has raised the issue of with aviation secretary P S Kharola.

“Fare of Rs 3.95 lakh one way Delhi to London on August 26. No, it’s not first class. It’s economy on British Airways. Air India, Vistara also Rs 1.2 to 2.3 lakh. College admission time! See minimum fare on @GoogleTravel in August. Have alerted aviation secretary,” Gupta, secretary of Inter State Council Secretariat secretary that comes under the Union home ministry, said on social media.

Comments were sought from the Union aviation ministry on whether it is planning to rein in the rampaging India-UK airfares but no comment came till the time of going to press.

Airlines, on their part, say the only way out is to add capacity by allowing more flights – something that may happen soon. A combination of three factors has led to fares spiralling.

‘₹1.5L flight ticket unaffordable for most students’

A combination of three factors — 30 weekly flights between India and the UK, pent up demand for travel for almost 3.5 months since the UK restricted travellers from India and the ongoing peak student season — has led to fares spiralling. “If economy class isn’t available, it automatically fetches business fare but shows economy on travel portal. The basic point still remains (about) Rs 1.2 lakh for one-way direct flight is still too high,” Gupta tweeted.

“Even Rs 1.15 lakh is exorbitant and unaffordable for most students seeking admission purely on merit and not on financial strength,” he said in another tweet.

From August 8, India will move to the amber category under which travellers from India will be allowed without any need for a mandatory 10-day hotel quarantine as they will be allowed to do so at their homes or other places of stay in the UK. The opening amid pent-up demand has led to fares spiralling. A quick sear on travel portals Saturday evening show Mumbai/Delhi-London one-way, economy fares being over Rs 1 lakh on a majority of days in August. Fares start falling after September 10, by when the pent up rush would have flown out. Delhi/Mumbai-London one-way goes all the way upto Rs 1.3 lakh. TNN

Fares start falling after September 10, by when the pent up rush would have flown out. Delhi/ Mumbai-London oneway goes all the way upto Rs 1.3 lakh