NEW DELHI: The ministry of civil aviation on Saturday issued a fare-cap order to curb steep price surges across domestic routes following widespread flight cancellations by IndiGo. However, it did not name the airlines directly and referred it to as “one of India’s major airlines”.In order no 01/2025, the ministry said the disruptions had led to severe capacity constraints and “unreasonable surge” in fares on multiple sectors, prompting intervention in the public interest. The government has now imposed temporary maximum fare limits for all scheduled domestical flights.Under the new cap, airlines cannot charge more than:• Rs 7,500 for routes up to 500 km• Rs 12,000 for 500–1,000 km• Rs 15,000 for 1,000–1,500 km• Rs 18,000 for routes above 1,500 kmThe ministry clarified that these limits exclude applicable UDF, PSF and taxes, and will not apply to Business Class or RCS-UDAN flights.

The order further mandates that the fare caps apply uniformly across all booking platforms, whether tickets are purchased through airline websites or online travel agents. Airlines have also been instructed to ensure consistent availability of tickets across fare buckets and to consider adding capacity on routes witnessing unusually high demand.The fare restrictions will remain in force until prices stabilise or until the government issues a further review.The directive comes amid an ongoing crisis triggered by large-scale cancellations, which have stranded thousands of passengers and created a sudden shortage of seats across busy domestic sectors.The aviation ministry, in a statement issued earlier, had confirmed, “An official directive has been issued to all airlines mandating strict adherence to the fare caps that have now been prescribed. These caps will remain in force until the situation fully stabilises. The objective of this directive is to maintain pricing discipline in the market, prevent any exploitation of passengers in distress, and ensure that citizens who urgently need to travel — including senior citizens, students, and patients — are not subjected to financial hardship during this period.”The ministry added that it would “continue to closely monitor fare levels through real-time data and active coordination with airlines and online travel platforms. Any deviation from the prescribed norms will attract immediate corrective action in the larger public interest.”

IndiGo, which typically operates more than 2,200 flights a day, cancelled over 1,000 flights till Friday.