The proposals were made by the Transport, Tourism and Culture Committee. (Representative)
New Delhi:
A parliamentary committee has asked the civil aviation ministry to cap the upper and lower tiers of air tickets and ensure that airlines do not adopt predatory pricing mechanism under the guise of free market economy.
“A fine balance needs to be struck between the commercial interests of private airlines and the interests of passengers, thus allowing private airlines to grow, while also keeping the interests of passengers in mind. no vested interest in commercialization,” the panel said.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture made recommendations about this in its report on the Ministry’s request for grants for 2023-24. The report was discussed in Parliament on Monday.
Among others, there were complaints about sudden increases in air ticket prices during peak travel seasons.
The Committee also observed that the current increase in air fares does not reflect the Ministry’s fare control mechanism based on the existing Aircraft Regulations of 1937, as the prices during the increase in air fares tend to exceed acceptable or reasonable limits. on “reasonable profit and general prevailing tariff”.
On the one hand, the government is planning to make air transport affordable for the common people and air capacity is increasing, but on the other hand, there is no corresponding expansion of the ability to import aircraft. Given the high demand, this will create a shortage of air tickets and lead to an increase in prices, the report said.
“The committee recommends that the ministry have a mechanism such as capping high and low prices to stop the practice of ‘predatory pricing’ or sudden price increases … even if price buckets are created according to international aviation. as per the norms, DGCA and the ministry should keep a close watch and make a mechanism to monitor the websites of various airlines to avoid misleading the passengers,” the statement said.
The commission further said that private airlines should be fined if they do not publish correct information regarding fares.
“The Committee observes that the Ministry of Civil Aviation has a duty to the passenger community and the country as a whole to ensure that airlines do not adopt pricing mechanisms under the guise of free market economy. The Committee recommends that the Ministry propose a pricing mechanism for airline tickets to ensure that passengers are not overcharged,” he added. he is.
(Except for the headline, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and was published on a syndicated channel.)
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