Lok Sabha Question No. 1578 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-07-26
Subject: Regulation of Air Fare
Ministry: CIVIL AVIATION
Asked by: N.K. PREMACHANDRAN, M. B. RAJESH, ANTO  ANTONY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 1578 (To be answered on the July 2018) 26th

## LOK SABHA

## REGULATION OF AIR FARE

1578.

SHRI NK PREMACHANDRAN

SHRI MB RAJESH

SHRI ANTO ANTONY

## Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION

be pleased to state: -

- (a) whether the Government proposes to formulate a regulatory authority for controlling and monitoring air fares and if the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government would direct Air India to operate more services and make more seats in the Kerala-Gulf sector in the festival season to provide relief to passengers; if sO, the details thereof;
- (b) whether it has come to the notice of the Government that the flight charges are being increased by airlines taking advantage of the vacation seasons and if SO, the action taken to regulate the flight charges during the peak season;
- () whether the Government has imposed conditions for fixing the rate of air tickets, if so, the details thereof;
- (f) whether there is any standardized protocol to fix the air fares in the country and if so, the details including its salient features thereof; and
- (e) the initiative of the Government to arrange more flight services to the Middle East considering the vacation season there;
- (g) if not; whether the Government would consider framing the aforesaid mechanism in this regard and if s0, the reaction of the Government thereto?

## ANSWER

## Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION

(Shri Jayant Sinha)

(a) No such proposal is under consideration in this Ministry:

Under the provisions of Sub-Rule(1) of Rule 135, Aircraft Rules 1937, airlines are free to fix reasonable tariff having regard to all the relevant factors, including the cost of operation, characteristics of service, reasonable and the generally prevailing tariff: profit

(b) Airfares are not regulated by the Government:

Airfare so established by the airlines is published on their website under the

provision of Sub-Rule (2) of Rule 135, Aircraft Rules 1937.

- The domestic airline pricing runs in multiple levels (bucket or RBD) which Appex fares) bookings (eg: upto 90, 60, 30, 14 and 07 days before departure)
- Airlines remain compliant to the regulatory provisions %f Rule 135 as long as the fare charged by them does not exceed the fare established and displayed on their website.
- are in line with the practice followed globally. Usually, the lower levels of the fare in the fare bucket are assigned to advance purchase (popularly known as As the time iapses and the date of journey approaches closer (from 07 days to date of departure); the fare available is on higher side of fare bucket; (c) In the existing schedule, Air India operates following flights from Kerala to Gulf Middle East :

## Kochi

Kochi-Riyadh-Kochi

02 flights per week

Delhi-Kochi-Dubai

07 flights per week

Dubai-Kochi

07 flights per week

Kochi-Jeddah-Kochi

04 flights per week

## Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram-Riyadh-Thiruvananthapuram

02 flights per week

Chennai- Thiruvananthapuram-Sharjah & vice versa

07 flights per week

## Calicut

Calicut-Dubai-Calicut

07 flights per week

Calicut-Sharjah-Calicut

07 flights per week

Air India plans to maintain same schedule and is unable to add capacity on Kerala-Gulf / Middle East route in near future due to non availability of resources.

- (g) As replied in para (b) above: