"Economy class is no more economical": AAP MP Raghav Chadha raised expensive air travel issue in Rajya Sabha
Aam Aadmi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha put forward the pain of the common air traveller in the discussion on the Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak 2024 in the Rajya Sabha. He said that the government has forgotten the promise of giving cheap air tickets in the Udan scheme. He said - the promise was to make people wearing slippers travel by air, but what happened to that promise of the government? Now even those wearing Bata company's shoes are not able to buy air tickets. Economy class is no more economical.
He mentioned the rising air fares and said that there should be some regulation to control this. Raghav Chadha said that the public's pocket is being robbed in the name of air travel. He mentioned the air fares of various sectors and said that in some places passengers are being charged very high fares. Flights to Maldives are cheap, but flights to Lakshadweep are expensive. He said that the government should make air travel accessible to the common traveller instead of luxury.
Raghav Chadha said that food and drink at the airport is also very expensive. He said that one has to spend 200-250 rupees for a cup of tea. On the other hand, a bottle of water is available for 20 rupees in the market outside, the same bottle of water is available at the airport for 100 rupees.
Raghav Chadha said that even after an expensive ticket, there is no guarantee of travel. There is no warranty even if your luggage is broken or damaged. He described the country's airports as worse than bus stations and said that there are such long lines here that many people even miss their flights. People buy expensive tickets to reach their destination quickly, but flights are getting delayed by 3 to 4 hours in small cities.
The AAP MP said that there are no airports around many popular tourist spots in the country and tourism is getting affected due to lack of connectivity. Raghav Chadha urged the Union Civil Aviation Minister to address these challenges faced by air travellers.