New Delhi: Terming supply and demand trends as key triggers for movement in air fares, fair trade watchdog CCI has ruled that the government or the aviation regulator can not be asked to cap the flight ticket prices as that would against the spirit of competition in the sector.
"Today, the forces of demand and supply govern the air fares. Whenever supply is more and demand is less, air fares fall and in lean season the airlines do decrease air fares," the Competition Commission of India (CCI) said in an order released on Thursday.
The order was passed following a complaint against the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, wherein they were accused of not having evolved a pricing policy of air tickets like Railways and State Transport Corporations so as to fix MRP of airfares to be charged from passengers by various airlines. Disposing off the complaint, CCI said the complaint does not raise any competition issues and "it is only when demand is more and supply is less that the airlines venture to increase the air fares."
14/03/13 PTI/Financial Express
