Pune: Amod Ganguly, a Balewadi resident, was at his wit’s end when he tried to book four return tickets to Kolkata to attend a family wedding late April.“The total airfare for four people from Pune came to Rs92,000,” he said. “Previously, you only saw those prices during the peak of Diwali or Christmas.” The steep price of travel has forced him to take a difficult family decision. “Now, only my son and I will fly; my wife and daughter have to stay back,” said the bank employee.The story is similar for Sameep Tiwary, a private sector employee from Katraj. Faced with a Rs56,000 quote for a return trip to Delhi for four, his family has decided to split their modes of transport. “We can’t afford that without dipping into our savings or relying on credit cards. Now, only one of us will fly while the rest take the train,” Tiwary said.In Bavdhan, Vinod Yadav was equally shocked by a Rs74,000 quote for a return trip to Patna. “It is simply unaffordable. We will either travel by train or cancel the trip altogether,” he said.A sharp 25% spike in aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, combined with the govt’s removal of fare caps, has pushed domestic ticket prices to levels that many passengers say are well beyond their reach. While authorities previously suggested that fares would remain stable, both passengers and travel industry experts report a significant and painful increase in costs.Industry insiders point to a combination of factors driving the surge. Beyond the ATF price hike—largely attributed to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East—airlines have introduced fuel surcharges ranging from Rs199 to Rs2,300 on domestic routes.The Centre recently removed fare caps that had been in place since Nov to stabilise the market during the IndiGo crisis. With more seats freed from pricing restrictions as of April 20, airlines are now passing their full operational cost pressures onto the consumer.Mehboob Shaikh, chairman of the Travel Agents Association of India (central and south Maharashtra chapter), described the situation as critical. “The sharp increase in ATF prices and the removal of fare caps, occurring just as the summer travel season approaches, has created a difficult situation,” Shaikh said. “Airlines have already begun aggressively passing on costs.”As the peak summer holiday season nears, travel experts warn that without intervention or a cooling of fuel prices, more families will be forced to abandon the skies for the tracks.
