DGCA Faces Heat for IndiGo Flight Crisis
Former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai has strongly criticised India’s aviation regulator DGCA for failing to prevent the recent chaos at IndiGo. Pai said the regulator should have reviewed the airline’s preparedness when delays began in late November and accused it of being caught “by surprise.” Tagging the PMO and top ministers, he demanded accountability, claiming that passengers were inconvenienced due to regulatory failure.
Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu responded, stating that the crisis resulted from IndiGo’s internal mismanagement of crew rosters and poor communication. He confirmed that IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers was summoned to the ministry and told to expedite refunds and baggage returns. The minister added that IndiGo must comply with fare caps and passenger-friendly measures without exception.
To stabilise operations, the civil aviation ministry has now directed IndiGo to cut 10% of its flight schedule—double the curtailment earlier ordered by DGCA. Despite operating over 2,200 daily flights, the airline has reported gradual improvement and aims to return to flying around 1,900 flights per day. The government believes the temporary cut will reduce cancellations while covering all destinations.
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