5 days on, IndiGo disruption persists in Chandigarh, 8,000 travellers affected

Five days after the IndiGo airlines crisis unfolded, flight operations at Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport remain curtailed with frequency of domestic flights to major destinations reduced by the beleagured airline.

Flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Srinagar and Pune are operating with reduced frequency. The international flight to Abu Dhabi has not been scheduled for the last two days.

On Sunday, 13 IndiGo flights were cancelled, of which seven were due to unknown reasons. Issues such as flight cancellations, refunds, rescheduling, baggage delivery and timely updates persist but airport authorities claimed that the situation is improving day by day.

“The tickets are available at a slightly higher prices than normal but it is not certain whether the flight will go or not. It is entirely passengers’ call,” said Abhimanyu Verma, a visitor at the airport who had come to enquire about tickets to Jammu.

After five days of public outcry and hassle, IndiGo, CHIAL, and Punjab government officials woke up to address the situation by setting up a 24X7 control room to facilitate the passengers.

Secretary, Civil Aviation, Punjab, Sonali Giri, said, "The control room, set up at the Duty Terminal Manager’s office, will facilitate the passengers affected by IndiGo flight delays/cancellations.”

Local airline officials are still struggling with timely refunds, rescheduling, baggage delivery and quick grievance redressal.

Officials disclosed that IndiGo is holding around 30 luggage belonging to passengers, which will be sent to their respective residences free of cost. The airline officials said they will inform passengers of any flight cancellations at least 10 hours before departure.

For the last three days, the airport has witnessed around 30 flight cancellations daily, affecting the travel of about 8,000 passengers, Giri informed. All passengers scheduled for December 4 have either been refunded or had their flights rescheduled. The airline is still processing refunds for passengers booked on December 5, she added.

“Due to the prolonged IndiGo mess, trains are witnessing increased rush, especially on weekends. ‘Reserved tickets to major stations are available on most trains. For Jammu, passengers need to book early,’ said Sanjeev Kumar Choudhary, Station Superintendent, Chandigarh railway station.”