New Delhi: While hearing a petition against IndiGo flight crisis today (Dec 10), the Delhi High Court reportedly pulled up the Centre and the concerned authorities over the chaos. “Why did such a situation even precipitate? What steps were taken to assist passengers?” the bench, as quoted by ANI, asked the Centre and the IndiGo authorities. The Bench also asked the government to explain the arrangements made to manage stranded travellers and prevent harassment at airports.
Earlier, the Supreme Court had termed the chaos as “a serious matter.”
IndiGo is currently facing backlash from both the Centre and the flyers due to the chaos that has been triggered due to the massive cancellations of flights. According to aviation experts, the situation has been created due to regulatory changes in pilots’ flight duty and regulations.
In the Delhi HC, the petition had been filed to seek intervention from the Centre to provide support and refunds to affected passengers. The matter will be hea
rd by a bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, the PTI reported.
The civil aviation secretary Samir Kumar Sinha had stated that the government had actively worked to address passengers’ concerns. ” It was a major concern, and in fact, we took due notice, and we issued an order, and also we coordinated with IndiGo, and I think all 100% refunds have already been completed,” he told ANI.
He also assured that the passengers would receive their baggage within the next 24 hours. According to reports, Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said the ministry had considered it necessary to curtail IndiGo’s overall routes for stabalising the airline’s operations. The airline has been asked to submit a revised schedule by 5 PM on December 10, reported the Hindustan Times.
Rs 1,000 crore loss to businesses: Report
The crisis has begun to ripple far beyond airport terminals. The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) has estimated that the airline’s large-scale flight cancellations have already resulted in a business loss of nearly Rs 1,000 crore to the capital’s trade, industry, tourism and exhibition sectors, reported the India Today.
CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal, as quoted by India Today, said daily flight disruptions had severely impacted the movement of traders, tourists and business travellers, hitting market activity across the national capital.