Manipur Government Seeks Intervention to Lower Airfares and Enhance Flight Services
New Delhi/Imphal: The government of Manipur has reiterated its request to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) to take action on the high airfares affecting flights to and from Imphal. Officials reported this development on Saturday.
During a significant meeting, Anurag Bajpai, the Additional Chief Secretary for Transport, Textiles, Commerce, and Industry, discussed the pressing civil aviation issues faced by the residents of Manipur with the MoCA Secretary.
Attendees included the relevant Joint Secretary and Director from the Ministry.
Bajpai emphasized the critical problem of inflated airfares imposed by airlines such as IndiGo, Air India Express, and Alliance Air, which operate in the Imphal region. He noted that ticket prices are nearly five to six times higher than those in other northeastern states.
He informed the MoCA Secretary that the airlines in the Imphal sector are not adhering to the Government of India's airfare capping guidelines. Additionally, he pointed out that the number of flights has been reduced by all airlines operating in the region since October.
During the discussion, Bajpai mentioned that Alliance Air has ceased operations on vital routes, including Imphal-Silchar-Imphal, Imphal-Aizawl-Imphal, and Imphal-Dibrugarh-Imphal. He urged the MoCA Secretary to recommend the immediate resumption of these services, suggesting they be included under the Regional Connectivity Scheme-UdeDeshkaAamNaagrik (RCS-UDAN).
Furthermore, he highlighted the urgent need for international flights from Imphal to Bangkok, both for passengers and cargo, at least once or twice weekly, due to high demand from industry groups and the public for export promotion.
Bajpai also proposed that Akasa Air and Druk Air be considered for service initiation in the Imphal sector, given the available slots. To address the significant inter-district air service demand, he requested that helicopter service providers increase their fleet, as both Pawan Hans and GVHL currently operate only one helicopter each.
He noted that Pawan Hans charges higher fares than GVHL for the same service, which contradicts the agreement with MoCA under RCS-UDAAN.
Lastly, Bajpai urged the MoCA Secretary to expedite the long-standing request to rename Imphal International Airport to Bir Tikendrajit International Airport.