Airfares are expected to reach their feverish peak by next month with overseas travellers waiting to reach home to celebrate Onam. However, there is no certainty even now that the expats could be able to reach home this time with affordable airfares despite the State government reaching out to the Centre seeking permission to press in charter flights to bring expats back to Kerala during Onam.
In Parliament, in response to a question, Union Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways and Civil Aviation General (Retd) V.K. Singh on Thursday said that in the recent past, the Centre has received references including from the Chief Minister of Kerala requesting necessary approvals for charter flights to be operated for transport of non-resident Keralites from Gulf countries to India. However, there are no specific requests for the operation of charter aircraft on the India-Gulf sector pending with this Ministry as of July 13, Mr. Singh said. He also added that charter flights are generally approved under the Inclusive Tour Package (ITP) guidelines.
However, a letter accessed by The Hindu revealed that Suman Billa, principal secretary, Industries and Norka department has written a letter to Union Ministry of Civil Aviation on July 3 requesting permission to operate chartered flights between UAE and India from August 15 to September 15, adhering to the stipulated CAR (Civil Aviation Requirements) of 30 days under ITP (International Travel Permits) provisions.
