Bihar: Ticket prices for Darbhanga flights double in 2 days

PATNA: The air ticket prices from Darbhanga to Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai has more than doubled in just a couple of days after the bookings for debut flights to and from the north Bihar town started.
On Monday, the tickets for one-way journey on all sectors from Darbhanga was available at Rs3,799. The prices surged by 114% on Delhi and 133% on Mumbai and Bengaluru routes. One ticket for Delhi-Darbhanga flight is now in Rs8,132-9,330 range while tickets for Mumbai-Darbhanga and Bengaluru-Darbhanga routes were available between Rs8,866 and Rs10,066.
As per the schedule, the commercial flight operations from Darbhanga airport would commence on November 8, following the completion of ongoing work on the airstrip and civil enclave.The maiden flight from Bengaluru, SG- 493, would reach Darbhanga at 11.15am and take off for Bengaluru at 4.25pm.
An airline executive at Delhi told this newspaper on Wednesday that the response to and from Darbhanga airport has been encouraging. “The passenger rush on all sectors is high due to festive season and also because people want to travel to their workplaces or hometowns in north Bihar. Many are booking tickets to experience the maiden flight journey to and from Darbhanga,” the executives said.
Talking about the ticket prices, he said, “Prices change due to the availability of seats and demand. Airlines have different bucket fare for economy coach, business and first-class. The airlines start with low prices to fill the minimum capacity. The minimum bucket price for Darbhanga route was Rs3,799. If the prices on all sectors are high, it means the demand is also high.”
Commercial flight operations from Darbhanga airport would be a boon for 22 districts of north Bihar, including Muzaffarpur, Madhubani, Samastipur, Sitamarhi, Champaran, Saharsa and Purnea.
People of Mithilanchal region are elated over the scheduled commencement of flight operations.
Pankaj Roy of Darbhanga said, “The cost of debut flight is already soaring high. I think it would defeat the purpose of Udan scheme.”
Sanjeev Kumar, who booked ticket from Mumbai to Darbhanga, was happy that he would not have to pay extra money to reach his hometown. “Earlier, I took the flight from Mumbai to Patna and from there I used to go by road. But with the commencement of flight from my hometown, I don’t have to spend much money,” he said.