Friday, 05 December 2025
Friday, 05 December 2025
Raghav Reddy, on an official visit to IIM Kolkata, has been waiting at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport since 7pm Thursday.
After repeated delays through the evening, the flight to Hyderabad was cancelled at 10pm.
“There has been no update since then. I had my boarding pass, so I was stuck after the security check-in with no food or place to rest through the night,” Raghav told The Telegraph Online on Friday morning.
A frequent-flyer to different parts of India and abroad, Raghav said he had never faced such a situation ever before.
47 IndiGo flights were cancelled at the NSCBI airport till this report was filed.
Many among the passengers said they were informed of cancellations after reaching the airport. Others said the delays stretched for hours before the final cancellation notice came through. At one point, travellers were told to take connecting flights through other cities, only to find those too had been cancelled.
Among them was Adil Ahmed, a 25-year-old solo traveller from Srinagar. “My flight from Kolkata to Srinagar was scheduled at 3pm. Ten minutes before boarding, I got a message that it was cancelled,” he said. “I had booked the ticket for Rs 7,200 two days ago. Now, flights are showing Rs 20,000 to Rs 60,000. I can’t afford that. The only option is train, but getting a ticket now is impossible.”
A visitor from Malaysia, Thamarah Sudhir, who had planned to travel to Guwahati for Kamakhya Darshan, said her group was never informed in advance.
“We were supposed to board at 1.10pm. They told us the flight was cancelled when we went to check in,” she said. “We are foreigners, we are scared, and we don’t know what to do. Our return flight home is on the 12th, and now our plans are ruined.”
Other passengers flying to the Northeast faced similar problems.
Like many others, Shukla Rai, 64, and her son Anirban received the cancellation message after reaching the airport.
“If we had known earlier, we wouldn’t have booked. We’ve been offered a refund of Rs 14,000 on a Rs 20,000 ticket. And there are no flights before the 8th,” said Anirban. “Air India Express is charging Rs 36,000 per head. Road travel is not an option considering my mother’s advanced age.”
For some, the disruption had more serious consequences. Amit Kumar Garia was en route to Chennai for his father’s medical treatment when his 11.20am flight was cancelled.
“I was at the gate when I was told the flight was cancelled. Everything had been completed — boarding, baggage, security — and then they just said it’s off,” he said. “Now they’re offering a flight two days later or a refund of Rs 5,000. My father needs treatment. I left home at 5.30am. This is not just inconvenience; it’s harassment.”
Ranjit Singh Thakur from Amritsar sat with his elderly family members, all above 60-years-old, waiting for transport to Puri, where they were supposed to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary.
“They didn’t even send a proper message. We came three hours early and found out only at the counter that the flight was cancelled,” he said. “We are 12 people. Now we’re travelling by road in a matador, for Rs 60,000. This was supposed to be our anniversary trip. It has turned into a nightmare.”
