)
Air India will operate additional flights to Dehradun and offer concessional fares to help stranded passengers. Civil aviation minister Ajit Singh today directed Air India and Pawan Hans to render all required assistance to Uttarakhand government for transport of affected pilgrims and assist search and rescue efforts.
"We are assessing passenger demand. So far there has not been much rush but we expect it to grow once more people are rescued. We anticipate that most of the demand will be for travel to Gujarat We are also working out concessional fares,'' said an Air India executive. The airline's subsidiary Alliance Air operates 70 seater Canadian Regional Jet to Delhi and Lucknow.
Jet Airways and SpiceJet too fly between Delhi and Dehradhun but have not announced any additional flights or special fares.
"Singh has directed Air India to operate additional flights from Dehradun to bring stranded pilgrims and also offer concessional fares to the affected people. Pawan Hans has already deployed three helicopters in rescue operation. Singh has further directed Pawan Hans to deploy additional resources in the rescue operation and coordination with the state government,'' ministry of civil aviation said in a release.
According to reports over 200 persons have died in flash floods across the region and over 50,000 persons are still stranded. The central government has deployed army and air force in search and rescue operations Those affected include pilgrims visiting shrines of Kedarnath, Badrinath and Haridwar and also foreign tourists visiting the hills.
