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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BJP MLA caught by Lokayukta while accepting Rs 5 lakh bribe
Gadag (Karnataka) (PTI): Lokayukta police on Saturday said they caught BJP MLA Chandru Lamani allegedly accepting a Rs 5 lakh bribe.
The trap was laid by the Gadag Lokayukta police based on a complaint filed by a contractor.
“Today, a successful trap was laid by the Gadag Lokayukta police station. The accused public servant was caught while accepting Rs 5 lakh,” officials said, adding case has been registered under Section 7(a) read with 7(A) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
The complainant, Vijay Pujar, is a Class-I contractor from Chinchali in this district.
Lokayukta officials said the alleged bribe demand was linked to works under the Minor Irrigation Department, including the construction of retaining walls along a road.
“The accused had demanded Rs 11 lakh from the complainant to execute the work. During the trap, Rs 5 lakh was accepted,” officials said.
Along with the MLA, who represents the Shirahatti Assembly constituency, his personal assistants — Manjunath Valmiki and Guru Naik — have also been secured in connection with the case.
“Accused 1, 2 and 3 have been secured, and the investigation is in progress,” the Lokayukta said in a statement.
Reacting to the incident, in a sarcastic remark, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said, “BJP leaders are very honest. They are corruption-free in this country. The Lokayukta might have received some wrong information.”
He added, “Let us see what the Lokayukta says. I will react after that.”
Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, said he was not aware of the details and that his party does not tolerate bribery, adding that he would comment after gathering full information, while state BJP president B Y Vijayendra said he “would respond after ascertaining the facts.”
Meanwhile, supporters of Lamani condemned the Lokayukta action, alleging that the Congress government was behind the “conspiracy”.
They also raised slogans against the Congress government.
