IndiGo crisis continues as Bengaluru tour operators fear future problems
Bengaluru: Nearly a week after IndiGo began cancelling the flights, travel agencies and tour operators in Bengaluru say they are still struggling and are unsure how long the situation will continue.
According to a report published by Deccan Herald on Tuesday, some operators said the past few days have been filled with frustrated calls from customers, as they repeatedly rebooking/rescheduling tickets.
Karthik, manager of Nesara Tours LLP, reportedly said for his company, the scale of disruption caused by the crisis has been unprecedented. In the last week, more than 20 flights that we booked were cancelled.
“Some of our customers who were supposed to return to the city on Friday, were stranded after their flight was cancelled. They only managed to get back two days later, that too after we booked them on a different flight,” DH quoted Karthik as saying.
He said that although IndiGo had rescheduled their flight for Tuesday, it wasn’t confirmed
What frustrated agents and passengers is that in most cases of flight cancellations, passengers or operators had to pay for accommodations and other arrangements from their own pockets.
Karthik reportedly said, Bengaluru to Delhi was earlier Rs 9,000–10,000. Now it is Rs 20,000–25,000 on other flights. It is not easy to rebook customers as they have to pay extra.
Another operator, Suhas from Evergreen Tours, reportedly said IndiGo’s customer support has been almost unreachable. He said that they will continue to temporarily pacify their clients by reassuring them that things will be resolved soon as they fear they might lose business.
This week, they were “thankfully” spared major trouble as they had few IndiGo bookings. But the relief, he admits, is temporary. “We have already booked for December-end and January.” “There is anxiety because if this is not rectified, and if it recurs later, it will badly affect us. Entire trips will be cancelled,” DH quoted Shamant, proprietor of Sanman Travels as saying.
As per the report, unlike agencies that only book tickets, Shamant’s firm handles full travel packages including hotels, transport and logistics. If even one flight gets cancelled, the whole plan collapses. We are definitely worried about future bookings, he said.
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Karnataka loses Rs 5,474 crore to cyber frauds in three years: Minister
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Tuesday said that over the last three years, people in the state have lost Rs 5,474 crore to cyber frauds, of which the police have managed to recover Rs 627 crore so far.
The minister was responding to a question from Sakleshpur BJP MLA Cement Manju in the Legislative Assembly.
"Cyber fraud has been increasing in recent times. In the last four years, about 52,000 cyber frauds have taken place in Karnataka, and the numbers are rising day by day," Parameshwara said.
He pointed out that the government had planned to curb cyber fraud by introducing an amendment to police laws. However, the All India Gaming Federation obtained a court stay on the amendment, and the matter is currently pending in the Supreme Court.
"The matter is listed for December 19," he added.
Parameshwara stated that while over 22,000 cyber fraud cases were filed in 2023, only a limited number were identified, leading to losses of Rs 873 crore, of which Rs 177 crore was recovered.
Cyber frauds in 2024 resulted in losses of over Rs 2,500 crore from around 22,400 cases, with more than Rs 300 crore recovered by authorities, he added.
For 2025, the minister said, cyber fraud cases have dropped to roughly 13,000 following government measures, with losses exceeding Rs 2,000 crore and recoveries of Rs 125 crore so far.
He described cyber fraud as a significant challenge not only for Karnataka but for the entire country.
Parameshwara also highlighted that Karnataka was the first state in India to create a dedicated cyber vertical headed by a Director General of Police.
"Karnataka is waging a big fight against cyber fraud, and efforts are ongoing to bring down the number of cases," he said, adding that the state currently has 43 cyber police stations under a central cyber command.
