By Aroonim Bhuyan
Dubai(IANS) : A leading airline consumer body — the All India Airport Users’ Forum (AIAUF)– is planning to boycott state-run Air India for providing what it describes as sub-standard services on flights between India and the Gulf countries.
“We are going to boycott Air India for providing substandard services in the Gulf sector, especially from Kerala, and initiate legal action against them,” K.M. Basheer, the Sharjah-based AIAUF general secretary, told IANS.
He said that the carrier provided five-star treatment to passengers going to Britain and the US while charging comparatively lower fares but passengers on the Gulf sector were charged exorbitant fares while being subjected to indifferent treatment by the airline crew.
“Why is that so? We in the Gulf send the maximum amount of remittances to India while Indians living in the US or Britain make those countries their home. Yet fares to the Gulf sector are comparatively 50 to 60 percent higher than those to the US and London Heathrow,” Basheer said Tuesday.
“Flights, especially from Kozhikode to the Gulf, are frequently delayed or cancelled putting passengers to great inconvenience,” he added.
There are around 5.5 million expatriate Indians in the Gulf region.
Alleging that Air India was monopolising the Kozhikode airport, Basheer said: “Air India knows that the airport reaps immense profits, which helps it to overcome losses incurred in other airports. Hence, the airline authorities in India don’t allow other airlines to operate from Kozhikode to the Gulf sector.”
Stating that this was grossly unfair, he said: “Just look at Coimbatore airport, which is much smaller. Yet, they allow other airlines to operate on the Gulf sector.”
He said that the AIAUF would soon launch legal action against the carrier.
“We are going to file legal cases and we are taking the help of some NGOs and legal bodies in Kerala in this regard,” Basheer said.
He added that his organisation was soon going to launch a website where passengers could lodge complaints against Air India.
“Passengers can register their names on the website, and include the flight number, date, copy of the tickets and passport so that the cases can be filed,” he said.
“If you ever face any problems while travelling by Air India, just let us know. We will take action against them on your behalf.”