Agartala, August 13:
The Tripura government has sought the Centre’s intervention over the continuing reduction, withdrawal and proposed discontinuation of flight services from Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala, warning that shrinking air connectivity and rising fares are causing growing hardship for passengers in the northeastern state.
Tourism and Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury has written to Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, urging the Centre to intervene with airlines to restore withdrawn services, increase capacity on high-demand routes and address what the state government described as a sharp increase in airfares.
In his letter dated August 11, Chowdhury pointed out that several airlines, including Air India, Air India Express, IndiGo and Akasa Air, have either reduced services from Agartala, withdrawn existing routes or proposed discontinuing services in the coming months.
According to the state government, Air India has reduced its Agartala-Guwahati service, with the service facing possible discontinuation from October 22. Air India Express has reportedly withdrawn its Agartala-Bagdogra-Bengaluru service, while IndiGo has proposed withdrawing its direct Agartala-Hyderabad service from October 1.
The minister also referred to the proposed withdrawal of Akasa Air services from Agartala from October 22. He pointed out that services on several other routes, including Agartala-Shillong, Agartala-Aizawl and the direct Agartala-Chennai route, have already been discontinued.
The reduction in connectivity has been accompanied by concern over airfares on key routes. The state government has specifically drawn the Centre’s attention to rising fares on sectors connecting Agartala with Kolkata, Delhi, Guwahati and Bengaluru, among others.
For Tripura, which remains heavily dependent on air connectivity for long-distance travel, the issue has implications beyond passenger convenience. Medical treatment, higher education, business travel, tourism and official engagements frequently require residents to travel outside the state.
The issue has also been flagged by Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha, who said the government is taking the reduction in flight services seriously. While airfares fluctuate, he indicated that the declining availability of flights from Agartala is a matter of concern for the state.
Chowdhury has urged the Union Civil Aviation Ministry to hold discussions with the airlines concerned and facilitate the restoration of withdrawn services.
He has also sought an increase in the number of flights and available seats on routes witnessing sustained passenger demand, besides measures to check what the state considers abnormal increases in airfares.
For a landlocked and geographically isolated border state such as Tripura, air connectivity remains a critical link with the rest of the country. The successive withdrawal of services has therefore brought the issue beyond the realm of routine airline scheduling and into the domain of public policy and regional connectivity.
The state government’s appeal now puts the spotlight on the Centre and the airlines over whether withdrawn routes can be restored, capacity increased on busy sectors and the growing burden of airfares on passengers eased.
