Bhubaneswar, July 9: Air India has decided to withdraw its flight between Bhubaneswar and Calcutta from tomorrow, which coincides with rath yatra, inviting criticism from frequent flyers and travel agents.

Air India station manager (acting) Purna Chandra Sahoo has issued a notification which says that the AI 9780 flight, which leaves the city at 6.45pm and reaches Calcutta at 7.55pm “is being withdrawn from the current flight schedule till further notification”.

“Apart from tourists, a lot of entrepreneurs with the micro, small and medium enterprises sector are largely dependent on the Calcutta market and consequently, the service of the national carrier connecting two cities is very important. The withdrawal of service will definitely hurt all types of passengers,” Nishikanta Mishra, an entrepreneur, said.

Arun Kumar Mohanty, owner of a travel agency, said: “The time chosen by Air India to stop the flight to Bhubaneswar is unfortunate.”

Sources in the airline industry said the ATR aircraft, with passenger capacity of 48, was getting good response from passengers.

Authorities at the Air India office in the city refused to comment. However, an official spokesperson of the national carrier said: “The suspension is purely a temporary decision because the flight is being withdrawn due to operational reasons.”

“Air services between Calcutta and Bhubaneswar is always on the priority of Air India and the flight will resume very shortly,’’ the spokesperson added.

The carrier had suspended its flight to Calcutta on May 15, 2008, and restarted it more than three years later on September 23, 2011. Since the international flights from Calcutta take off in the evening and night, the Bhubaneswar-Calcutta flight serves as an important connecting flight.