COUPLE DRAGS AIRLINE TO DGCA FOR CHARGING FULL FARE FOR TODDLER


A Kharghar couple have filed a complaint with aviation regulator DGCA against IndiGo Airlines for demanding full flight fare of Rs 9,000 for their two-year-old son. Nidhi and Sanjai Sharma claim that the airline had initially issued a confirmed ticket for their son, Krishna, on a Mumbai-Delhi flight after charging a standard Rs 1,000 fee for infant passengers. 
But on the day of the journey, Feb 18, the staff asked Nidhi to produce Krishna's birth certificate to allow him to board the aircraft on the infant ticket. The complaint, sent to DGCA joint-director Lalit Gupta, alleges the airline did not specifically mention the certificate requirement when the Nidhi and Krishna's tickets were booked. 
IndiGo, however, said that it had followed all rules and that the primary passenger, Nidhi, failed to bring the toddler's birth certificate, which is required under the aviation norms. Airlines charge only a nominal fee for infant passengers instead of the full fare. "IndiGo converted the infant ticket to an adult one and charged Rs 9,115 just because my wife was not carrying our son's birth certificate. The airline exploited the situation," alleged Sanjai, who works in a steel company. Sanjai was not travelling with his wife and son. 
"The requirement for infants' birth certificates may be mentioned on the airline's website, but it does appear prominently. I am also upset with the way the airline staff treated my wife," Sanjai said. The Sharmas said that the 12.45 pm Mumbai-Delhi flight took off after a delay of more than two hours. "Will IndiGo compensate us for the pain and agony caused by this delay?" he asked. 

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