Kolkata, 9 December (H.S.): Amid widespread disruptions in IndiGo’s flight operations over the past eight days, a senior official of the Civil Aviation Ministry, Tanvi Sundriyal, on Tuesday conducted an extensive review of the situation at Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport. According to an official statement, the primary objective of the visit was to ensure that passenger services remain smooth and uninterrupted.

The Rahul Bhatia-led airline has cancelled thousands of flights across major metro cities and several airports nationwide during this period, causing severe inconvenience to lakhs of passengers. Among the six metro airports, Kolkata has been the least affected, with the airport handling 181 IndiGo flights daily — 91 arrivals and 90 departures.

During her inspection, Sundriyal reviewed all major passenger touchpoints, including IndiGo’s ticket counters, help desks, check-in counters, departure gates, and queue-management areas. She interacted with affected passengers to understand their concerns and assured them that the Ministry is monitoring the situation round-the-clock and taking all necessary measures to stabilise operations.

Following the inspection, a review meeting was held with senior officials of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), CISF, and airline representatives. The discussion focused on steps required to streamline flight operations, increase manpower deployment, and strengthen passenger-facilitation mechanisms.

Kolkata Airport officials said several measures have already been implemented to assist travellers, including deployment of additional staff, establishment of special assistance counters, real-time passenger updates, and enhanced coordination among all stakeholder agencies.

Sundriyal emphasised that passenger safety and convenience remain the Ministry’s top priorities. She added that the Civil Aviation Ministry is keeping a close watch on the evolving situation and extending full support to ensure early normalization of services.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh