(Image source from: Ndtv.com)
The Civil Aviation Ministry announced on Saturday that there will be limits on flight prices to manage the rise in ticket costs after significant delays and cancellations affected all domestic flights operated by IndiGo. In their announcement, the ministry acknowledged the complaints about the unusually high prices being charged by some airlines during this disruption. "To safeguard travelers from excessive pricing, the Ministry has used its regulatory authority to promote fair and reasonable fares on all impacted routes," the announcement stated. "An official order has been sent to all airlines requiring them to strictly follow the set fare limits, which will stay in effect until the situation returns to normal. The goal of this order is to ensure price fairness in the market, protect passengers facing difficulties, and guarantee that those who need to travel urgently, including elderly people, students, and patients, are not subjected to financial strain during this time," it continued. The ministry also mentioned that it will keep a close watch on fare changes through real-time data and will work closely with airlines and online booking sites.
In a different announcement, the ministry stated that it has instructed IndiGo to process all passenger refunds without delay. "The Ministry has ordered that refunds for all cancelled or disrupted flights must be finished by 8:00 PM on Sunday, 7 December 2025. Airlines have also been told not to charge any fees for rescheduling flights for passengers affected by cancellations," the statement said. Earlier in the day, numerous domestic flights operated by IndiGo were cancelled as the airline faced a major crisis that has now lasted five days. With 2,300 flights operating daily and a fleet of over 400 planes, IndiGo has experienced a significant drop in on-time performance due to these disruptions, which are expected to persist for several more days. This ongoing issue was mainly due to an unexpected shortage of pilots arising from planning mistakes, and authorities are closely monitoring the situation. There have been chaotic scenes at airports nationwide, as IndiGo's domestic passengers expressed their anger over flight delays or cancellations.
On Friday evening, IndiGo shared an apology on the social media site X. "We sincerely apologize and recognize how tough these last few days have been for many of you. While this situation won't be fixed immediately, we promise to do all we can to assist you during this time and to restore our services to normal as soon as possible," IndiGo stated. The airline mentioned that refunds for all canceled flights will be automatically sent back to the original payment methods of the customers. Additionally, on the same day, the airline's CEO announced that domestic flight services are expected to be fully back to normal between December 10 and 15, although IndiGo warned that recovery will require time due to the size of the operations.
Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu remarked on Friday that IndiGo’s operational issues are close to being resolved. In a special interview, Naidu commented, "I can say it is near resolution. The major congestion occurred at the major airports... and we are noticing that most of the main airports—Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai—have cleared the backlog of passengers from the last two days. The other airports should also be cleared by tonight. IndiGo is set to resume operations with a limited capacity starting tomorrow.""As things return to normal, they will gradually increase the capacity. However, regarding passengers not facing issues, you will notice improvements beginning tomorrow. The full return of IndiGo's operations may take a couple more days," he assured.
