Travel agents to meet DGCA over commission

Mumbai: The ongoing tussle between travel agents and foreign airlines over the issue of payment of commissions intensified as the associations’members will be meeting Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday to discuss the issue.
This will be the first crucial meeting between travel agents and the aviation sector watchdog after Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel took charge for the second time on Monday.
The travel agents and members of six associations, including the Travel Agents’ Association of India (TAAI), Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) and the IATA Agents Association of India (IAAI), will meet Naseem Ahmad Zaidi, director general of DGCA and will demand for a regulation to protect the travel agents and industry.
Ajay Prakash, national general secretary, Travel Agents Federation of India confirmed Tuesday’s meeting with DGCA to ET and said, “The association members are actively pursuing legislation for commission. The ongoing tussle has not been good for business. Foreign airlines should pay us a commission given that they get business from India.”
“There is need for somebody to oversee the business aspect of travel agents and foreign airlines. There should be some regulation or government body,” Rajji Rai, President of Travel Agents' Association of India (TAAI) said.
It was learnt that there is a possibility that DGCA may ask foreign airlines to explain their view on the commission before handing over a report to civil aviation ministry.
Most airlines stopped paying the 5% commission from November, forcing agents to shift to a fixed transaction fee on every ticket purchased. However, the fixed transaction fee, which was in the range of Rs 350 to Rs 2,500 a ticket depending on the class and routes, had also been discontinued from December.
02/06/09 Mithun Roy/Times of India

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Jun 2009