Rules on airfares to be issued in two weeks: Govt tells Supreme Court
New Delhi, Oct 17: Rules on airfares under the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam, 2024, have been finalised and will be published within two weeks.
The central government has stated this before a Supreme Court bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi which was hearing a PIL filed by activist S. Laxminarayanan, seeking regulation of airfares and prevention of exorbitant and arbitrary pricing by airlines, especially during festivals, natural disasters and peak travel seasons.
Appearing for the Centre, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati told the bench that the Ministry of Civil Aviation has finalised the Bharatiya Vayuyan Rules, which include all the detailed provisions for airfare regulation, transparency and passenger facilitation.
She submitted that the rules have received administrative approval and are currently in the final stage of vetting by the Legislative Department and will be published in the official gazette within two weeks.
Bhati also informed the court that the new rules will mandate airlines to publish fare charts, ensure transparency in pricing, establish a mechanism for monitoring predatory pricing and provide for passenger grievance redressal.
She said the rules will also prescribe a ceiling for the highest fare bucket on each route, to be revised periodically based on fuel prices, operational costs and inflation, to ensure fares remain within reasonable limits.
The PIL had alleged that airlines were charging exorbitant fares, sometimes 10 times the normal fare, taking advantage of surging demand, leaving passengers with no effective remedy and no transparent mechanism for fare determination.
It had sought a direction to the Centre and the DGCA to ensure airlines do not indulge in price gouging and to frame guidelines for fair and transparent pricing. (BVI)
