Guwahati, Jan. 15: A "rare corporate social responsibility initiative" by IndiGo airlines to carry the mortal remains of poor people of the Northeast living in New Delhi back to their homes free of cost has earned much praise from the Centre amid a fierce fare war among airlines to attract customers.

The gesture comes days after Jet Airways decided to do the same at 50 per cent concession fare.

The president of Inter-Globe Aviation Limited, IndiGo, Aditya Ghosh, told Robin Hibu, the nodal officer of Delhi police's special unit for northeasterners, recently that they would charge no fare to transport the bodies of those whose families are unable to bear the cost.

Named Akhri Ahuti, the airlines said it was an initiative to give something back to the people of the Northeast where they had launched their operations in 2004. The airlines, which operates flights from Guwahati, Agartala, Dimapur, Dibrugarh and Imphal, said it would provide the same facility if they start operation in other airports in the Northeast.

Union DoNER minister Jitendra Singh lauded IndiGo's decision.

"People from the Northeast residing in New Delhi often face hardships whenever there is a death in the family. Because of financial constraints, the relatives of the deceased struggle to take the mortal remains to their native place. Eventually, they conduct the last rites in Delhi itself by compulsion," a statement from the DoNER ministry said.

Singh said similar requests had been made to all the airlines operating in the region.

On Thursday, IndiGo had transported the coffin of Sovoi Kazigmai, a youth from Ukhrul in Manipur, who died in New Delhi.

Delhi police had approached the airline operators with the same request after it came across several incidents where underprivileged families from the region either had to bury their dear ones at the Delhi graveyards or struggle to bring the mortal remains back to their native land for last rites.

"I am touched by the prompt response from IndiGo officials in sending the body of the Northeast youth back home. His parents and sister could see him now before the last rites. It is really a noble gesture from the airlines," Hibu, hailing from Arunachal Pradesh and an inspector-general of Delhi police, said.

The special police unit was constituted in February 2015 after Nido Tania, a youth from Arunachal Pradesh, became a victim of racial attack and died in New Delhi.

Besides assisting the people from the Northeast facing crime, the unit helps people from the region by arranging treatment at concession, blood donations, coaching for IAS examinations, recruitments in Delhi police, among others.

More than 7 lakh people from the Northeast live in New Delhi for education, employment and business. However, many of them complains of racial discrimination and hate crimes.