Amid complaints over inflated airfare, Union Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu on Friday said the government was planning to introduce an online mechanism to address grievances to ensure passengers were not exploited by unnecessary fare hikes.

Moving the Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill, 2024, for passage in the Lok Sabha, Naidu explained that airfare was influenced by a variety of factors, including market demand, that were beyond the airlines merely setting their own prices.

"We must ensure that the airlines are not under so much pressure that they cannot operate. So a balanced approach is needed," he said.

The minister emphasised the importance of a regulatory environment that prevented exploitation while ensuring that the airlines remained financially viable.

He assured the Lower House that making airfare affordable was a top priority for the government.

"One of my top priorities is to make airfare affordable for the common man," he said, drawing attention to the significant shift in India's civil aviation sector since 2014.

He contrasted the situation before and after 2014, saying, "Until 2014, civil aviation was like 'civilised aviation' but after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it is considered 'civilian aviation', which reflects our commitment." In response to the issue of rising airfare, the minister announced plans to establish an online grievance redress mechanism.

"We are considering setting up an online mechanism to handle grievances, with a dedicated team, to ensure passengers are not exploited by unnecessary airfare hikes," he said.

This initiative is part of the ministry's proactive stance on ensuring fair pricing and timely resolution of passenger issues, Naidu added.

Beyond the airfare issue, the minister also spoke about the success and future of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS), which has launched in more than 500 routes.

He expressed the government's intent to extend and enhance the programme but acknowledged challenges, such as airlines withdrawing from certain routes after three years.

"We will address this and we may re-bid the route and restart the scheme," he said, indicating that the government was exploring options to maintain the momentum generated by RCS.

Naidu also highlighted the critical role of airport infrastructure in the development of states and emphasised the need for immediate action.

"If we don't address the problem today, it will become a huge problem in the future," he warned, discussing the collaborative approach between the central and state governments in land acquisition for airport development.

Taking a dig at the opposition, the minister remarked on the cultural shift within the civil aviation ministry since 2014.

"The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation does not have a 'sifarish culture' like the one before 2014. Now, instead of requests for seat upgrade, we get requests for airport upgrade, infrastructure upgrade, and facilities upgrade," he quipped, attributing the change to Modi's vision.

The Lok Sabha passed the Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill, 2024, on Friday to replace the 90-year-old Aircraft Act and further improve ease of doing business in the aviation space.

The Bill seeks to remove redundancies and replace the Aircraft Act, 1934 -- which has been amended 21 times -- at a time when India is one of the fastest-growing civil aviation markets in the world.

The Bill seeks to resolve existing anomalies between various aviation laws and ensure a coherent regulatory environment with well-defined chapters and clauses.

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