TRIVANDRUM, 25 August 2004 — Hundreds of NRIs and their families vacationing in Kerala this Onam, the harvest festival season, were caught off-guard with the airlines flying to Gulf destinations increasing their fares sharply. Jobseekers are also hit hard.
After withdrawing all discounts, some are charging the fares fixed by the Director General of Civil Aviation while others charge higher IATA fares. The fares have gone up by up to more than 25 percent, industry sources said. A Cochin-Dubai ticket on Air India is now costlier by Rs. 2, 250 at Rs.11, 750 compared to the previous fare of Rs 9, 500 while the Abu Dhabi fare goes up to Rs. 10, 950 from Rs 9, 250. The airlines are targeting the families returning for school opening after vacationing in Kerala during the Onam.
The rates will be in force till Sept. 15.
Fares to other destinations are as follows (previous fares in brackets): Doha and Bahrain Rs.13,200 (Rs.12,150) Riyadh Rs. 12,750 (Rs.12,350), Jeddah Rs.17,400 (Rs. 16,900), Muscat Rs.10,000 (Rs.9,100) and Kuwait Rs.13, 850 (Rs.13,400).
Chief Minister A. K. Antony has already registered his protest with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh against Air-India and Indian Airlines not reducing the fares in the Gulf-Kerala sector even after the state government scrapped the tax on aviation turbine fuel at huge losses to the exchequer.
