Call to introduce permanent airfare caps for passenger welfare, market stability
The Airline Users Rights and Grievance Redressal Forum (AURGRF) has urged the Civil Aviation Minister to permanently institute domestic airfare caps for passenger welfare, market stability and sustainable aviation growth.
Though the domestic airfares are deregulated, the fare caps introduced by the DGCA proved to be an effective intervention during the post-Covid recovery period. However, the dilution of these safeguards by way of unchecked dynamic pricing, unbundling of essential services, fuel surcharges and ancillary fees have exposed passengers to escalating, opaque and unpredictable airfare structures. Biji Eapen, president and Ajith Marath, Secretary, AURGRF said.
The Civil Aviation Ministry’s intervention during the recent Indigo flight disruptions has effectively prevented exorbitant air fare increase and protected passengers by implementing temporary fare caps ranging between ₹7,500 and ₹18,000 and the deployment of additional capacity. As the industry enters 2026 with stable operations, the prevailing domestic fares of ₹8,000–₹10,000 on long-haul sectors clearly demonstrate that excessive surge-based pricing lacks economic justification, the Forum said.
India currently handles over 5.38 lakh domestic passengers daily across 164 airports and the domestic passenger traffic is projected to reach 40 crore by 2029. Affordable, predictable and transparent airfares are therefore essential to develop regional connectivity, domestic tourism and inclusive economic growth, while the growing anomaly of international routes being cheaper than comparable domestic sectors undermines public confidence and national investments in domestic tourism infrastructure.
With new airlines expected to commence operations in 2026, competition is likely to improve, further reinforcing the need for stable and transparent fare regulation rather than price volatility, the office bearers said.
“Calibrated fare regulation is not anti-market; it is pro-market and pro-passenger and is essential for market stability. Institutionalising airfare caps will curb exploitative pricing, restores regulatory credibility, ensures fair competition, and secure the long-term sustainability and global credibility for India’s civil aviation sector,” they said.
Published on January 23, 2026
