High airfares amid Maha Kumbh demand force many Puneites cancel travel plans

Pune: Bhavya Sachdeva from Kalyaninagar was forced to cancel his plan to fly home in Noida twice in the past two months. "I tried last month, but the airfare to Delhi was skyrocketing. It was almost Rs25,000 per person one-way — an impossible deal for me and my family. A few days ago, I again checked the one-way fare for one person. It was Rs15,000. We calculated a round trip fare for three people, and it stood at almost Rs60,000. I cannot afford so much," Sachdeva, who works in a private firm, said.Airfares from Pune to different cities for the next week have virtually gone beyond the reach of the middle class, thanks to the cascading effects of the last leg of Maha Kumbh. The average one-way fare per person to Delhi for the next week ranges between Rs13,000 and Rs14,000. One has to pay Rs13,000 to Rs 14,000 for a one-way trip to Patna in the same period. The one-way per person fare from Pune to Ranchi for the next week stands between Rs 11,000 and Rs 12,000. A one-way trip to Lucknow next week would cost one Rs 12,000 to Rs 17,000.The scenario is a tad better for trips two weeks from now. The one-way per person fare from Pune to Delhi would be Rs5,400 then. A ticket to Lucknow would cost Rs7,400 and one for Ranchi would be Rs7,200. Nilesh Bhansali, the president of Travel Agents Association of Pune and the owner of Devam Tours and Travels, said, "There has been a reduction, but the fares are still on the higher side. Many people are still travelling from Pune to Prayagraj. In the absence of any direct flights, they are opting to travel to nearby cities like Delhi or Lucknow and then heading to the Kumbh site in some other mode of transport. The demand being high, airlines are taking advantage of the situation. So, the fares are high," he told TOI.Makrand Angal, the owner of Go Holidays, echoed Bhansali. "It is all because of the Kumbh Mela, and the fares will remain high till this month-end. One can expect to see a decline in fares from early March," Angal said.Yazdi Marker, the secretary of the Travel Agents Association of India (central and south Maharashtra chapter), said the demand was far more than the supply at present. "The supply in the form of aircraft and slots cannot increase suddenly like the demand. Hence, the fares are high. Kumbh Mela is one of the several factors at work. This has been happening for a long time now," he said.Against this backdrop, Sandeep Kumar Sahu has postponed his visit to his home in Gaya to April. "I fear even talking about the trains at present and didn't even try to get tickets. The airfares are beyond my reach now. I had thought of visiting home before summer, but the fares have not allowed me to do so. Gaya is extremely hot in summer, but now I will travel at that time," the Punawale resident said.Pune: Bhavya Sachdeva from Kalyaninagar was forced to cancel his plan to fly home in Noida twice in the past two months. "I tried last month, but the airfare to Delhi was skyrocketing. It was almost Rs25,000 per person one-way — an impossible deal for me and my family. A few days ago, I again checked the one-way fare for one person. It was Rs15,000. We calculated a round trip fare for three people, and it stood at almost Rs60,000. I cannot afford so much," Sachdeva, who works in a private firm, said.Airfares from Pune to different cities for the next week have virtually gone beyond the reach of the middle class, thanks to the cascading effects of the last leg of Maha Kumbh. The average one-way fare per person to Delhi for the next week ranges between Rs13,000 and Rs14,000. One has to pay Rs13,000 to Rs 14,000 for a one-way trip to Patna in the same period. The one-way per person fare from Pune to Ranchi for the next week stands between Rs 11,000 and Rs 12,000. A one-way trip to Lucknow next week would cost one Rs 12,000 to Rs 17,000.The scenario is a tad better for trips two weeks from now. The one-way per person fare from Pune to Delhi would be Rs5,400 then. A ticket to Lucknow would cost Rs7,400 and one for Ranchi would be Rs7,200. Nilesh Bhansali, the president of Travel Agents Association of Pune and the owner of Devam Tours and Travels, said, "There has been a reduction, but the fares are still on the higher side. Many people are still travelling from Pune to Prayagraj. In the absence of any direct flights, they are opting to travel to nearby cities like Delhi or Lucknow and then heading to the Kumbh site in some other mode of transport. The demand being high, airlines are taking advantage of the situation. So, the fares are high," he told TOI.Makrand Angal, the owner of Go Holidays, echoed Bhansali. "It is all because of the Kumbh Mela, and the fares will remain high till this month-end. One can expect to see a decline in fares from early March," Angal said.Yazdi Marker, the secretary of the Travel Agents Association of India (central and south Maharashtra chapter), said the demand was far more than the supply at present. "The supply in the form of aircraft and slots cannot increase suddenly like the demand. Hence, the fares are high. Kumbh Mela is one of the several factors at work. This has been happening for a long time now," he said.Against this backdrop, Sandeep Kumar Sahu has postponed his visit to his home in Gaya to April. "I fear even talking about the trains at present and didn't even try to get tickets. The airfares are beyond my reach now. I had thought of visiting home before summer, but the fares have not allowed me to do so. Gaya is extremely hot in summer, but now I will travel at that time," the Punawale resident said.