Sri Vijaya Puram, Apr 21: Mr. Bishnu Pada Ray, Member of Parliament, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, has raised serious concerns over the unreasonably high airfares on flights operating between Port Blair (Sri Vijayapuram) and major mainland cities such as Kolkata, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, Bangalore, Delhi, Bhubaneswar and others. In a strongly worded appeal to the Government of India and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, he has urged immediate intervention to regulate and rationalize airfare structures, ensuring affordability and transparency for the residents of the Islands.
Highlighting the pressing issue, Mr. Ray stated that airfares on these sectors, which once ranged between ₹4,000 to ₹6,000, have now soared to exorbitant levels between ₹15,000 to ₹30,000 for a two-hour journey especially during festivals, school vacations, and peak travel seasons. This has placed an undue financial burden on the common islanders, many of whom belong to economically weaker sections and reside in remote and underdeveloped areas of the Union Territory.
He emphasized that the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, face ongoing employment and infrastructure challenges due to limited industrial presence. In the past, heavily subsidized passenger ship services offered a critical transportation lifeline. However, with the number of sailings drastically reduced in recent years and the diversion of two newly-built passenger ships (MV Atal and MV Ashoka) constructed at a cost of ₹1,294 crore from the UT budget to other operations, islanders are now left with no viable alternative to expensive air travel.
Moreover, Mr. Ray pointed out the unfair advantage taken by airlines in the absence of regular ship services. Airlines have continued to hike airfares arbitrarily, despite the fact that airport charges such as RNFC, TNLC and UDF at Port Blair’s Veer Savarkar International Airport are comparatively lower than those at mainland airports like Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai.
The MP also underscored the critical impact of inflated fares on medical emergencies. With the lack of advanced healthcare facilities in the Islands, the Health Department frequently refers patients to mainland hospitals under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. However, high airfares make it extremely difficult for patients and their attendants to afford timely travel.
Drawing parallels to the recent successful fare regulation during the Kumbh Mela pilgrimage in Prayagraj (January–February 2025), Mr. Ray has called for similar government action to cap and stabilize airfares between Port Blair and the mainland. In his appeal, Mr. Ray requested urgent action by the government to :- (1) Regulate and cap airfares on all flights operating between Port Blair (Sri Vijayapuram) and the mainland cities of Kolkata, Visakhapatnam, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Delhi, and vice versa (2) Ensure uniformity and transparency in fare structures, comparable to routes of similar distance and duration within the mainland (3) Introduce a direct flight between Madurai and Port Blair via Chennai to meet the long-standing demand of the Islanders particularly Tamil community residing in the Islands.
These measures are essential not only to safeguard the interests of the residents of the Islands but also to promote year-round sustainable tourism. The current airfare crisis must not be allowed to persist unchecked, Mr. Ray stated. He concluded with a firm appeal to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and all concerned authorities to treat this matter with the urgency it deserves and take swift, corrective action in the larger public interest.
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