Actively considering issue of airfare fluctuations, Centre tells Supreme Court

The Union government on Monday (February 23, 2026) submitted to the Supreme Court that the Ministry of Civil Aviation is actively considering the issues raised in a public interest petition seeking regulatory guidelines to control the sharp fluctuations in airfare and ancillary charges imposed by private airlines.

A Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta allowed the Centre four weeks to complete deliberations and inform the court about the outcome.

“This is a very serious concern,” the court remarked, scheduling the next hearing on March 23.

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Previously, the court had stepped in to examine the reasons behind the “unpredictable fluctuations” in airfares and had flagged the exorbitant hikes during festival days.

The court had termed a sharp increase in the fares as “exploitation” while asking the Centre and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to file their responses to the petition filed by social activist S. Laxminarayanan, who has sought to establish a robust and independent regulator that ensures transparency and passenger protection across the civil aviation sector.

It has issued notices to the Centre, the DGCA and the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India seeking their responses on the plea.

The plea had also pointed to the reduction in free check-in baggage allowance for economy class passengers from 25 kg to 15 kg, “thereby converting what was earlier part of the ticketed service into a new revenue stream”.

It also said inaction by the State in regulating fare algorithms, cancellation policies, service continuity and grievance mechanisms constituted a dereliction of its constitutional duty and called for urgent judicial intervention.