Hyderabad: Travelling home this Diwali is turning out to be an exorbitant affair for many with airfares shooting up by 100% on several routes including Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Jaipur, Nagpur, Lucknow, and Bhopal.
For instance, while the regular ticket price for a Hyderabad to Patna flight is anywhere from Rs 6,400 to Rs 7,200, it has touched Rs 22,000 on Oct 30. Similarly, a one-way ticket to Jaipur has catapulted from an usual Rs 5,342 (avg) to Rs 10,300.
And this is true of other domestic destinations as well, with many being quoted a similarly high price for their journey back to Hyderabad post Diwali. According to online portals, even one-stop connections are available for no less than Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 — as against the usual Rs 12,000 to Rs 15,000.
Incidentally, airfares between Hyderabad and other southern cities like Chennai, Bengaluru, and Tirupati have remained unchanged for the Diwali season.
Cash in on heavy air traffic
According to travel agents, this is a regular phenomenon adapted by airlines during festive seasons like Dasara, Diwali, and Christmas, to cash in on the heavy air traffic.
“With Diwali falling on a long weekend this year, there is a surge in demand for air tickets, especially to destinations like Delhi, Lucknow, and Kolkata. Diwal-i, being one of the most widely celebrated festivals, has prompted a large number of students and working professionals to line up at travel agencies, seeking round trip tickets to visit their hometowns or holiday destinations,” said Moez Meghani, founder of Max Travels.
“I was shocked with the cost of airfare skyrocketing from the typical Rs 8,000 to Rs 21,000 between Hyderabad and Patna just before Diwali, which I found to be exorbitant for me. I attempted to secure tickets on one regular and two special trains to Bihar, but was unsuccessful as they were all fully booked, with hundreds of passengers already on the waiting list,” said Pradeep Sinha, who works at a private bank in Begumpet.
Bus fares rise astronomically
This plight of exorbitant fares hasn’t spared bus commuters either. Ticket rates have doubled or even tripled when compared to the standard rates for RTC and private buses, for those operating to cities such as Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Tirupati, and Nagpur. If the fare in sleeper class buses between Hyderabad and Vijayawada is Rs 500 on a regular basis, it has soared to Rs 1,700 for Oct 30, a day before Diwali. Similarly, passengers travelling from Hyderabad to Rajahmundry are forced to shell out Rs 1,900 or more for their travel, as opposed to the usual fare of Rs 1,200.
“As there were no train tickets and flight fares were expensive, I was left with no choice but to resort to private bus service to reach my hometown by paying Rs 4,000 for a seat that would normally cost Rs 2,000, as this was the only remaining alternative,” said Shivani Jadhav, an IT professional travelling to Nagpur..
Train tickets in both regular and specials to all the major cities and towns in AP, Maharashtra, Gujarat, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh have been sold out a few weeks ago, and a large number of passengers are on the waiting list.
GFX: Airfares from Hyderabad to other cities
Destination
Standard fare
Fare on Oct 30
Patna
Rs 8,000
Rs 21,000
Jaipur
Rs 5,400
Rs 10,300
Bhopal
Rs 6,266
Rs 11,674
Chandigarh
Rs 7,681
Rs 15,720
Kolkata
Rs 6,266
Rs 12,554
Lucknow
Rs 5,988
Rs 10,639
