New Delhi:
Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu has announced a 50 per cent reduction in airfare for passengers traveling to the Kumbh Mela in an exclusive interview with NDTV. The new reduced fares came into effect starting today.
The government has already directed airlines to cut the ticket prices. Three meetings were held with airline companies before implementing the fare reduction.
Airlines were reminded that such a grand event happens once in 140 years, and they must be mindful of the significance.
At the same time, the government has ensured that airlines do not suffer financial losses due to the fare reduction.
Earlier, aviation watchdog DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) had asked airlines to rationalise airfares for flights to Prayagraj. On January 23, the DGCA officials held a meeting with airline representatives regarding this.
In January, the DGCA had approved of 81 additional flights to meet the increased demand. Airlines, including SpiceJet, are operating more flights and the number of flights operating to and from the city has gone up to 132.
But the increased number also came with a huge spike in air fare, with Delhi-Prayagraj ticket prices alone seeing a 21-fold rise.
The Maha Kumbh, which started on January 13, will conclude on February 26.
The total footfall for the mega religious festival has surpassed 199.4 million, despite a stampede earlier this week due to the overwhelming rush at key bathing ghats.
A temporary city has sprung up across 4,000 hectares (9,990 acres) on the river banks – the size of 7,500 football fields – with 150,000 tents to accommodate devotees and almost an equal number of toilets.