32% rise in airport staff drunk on duty in the first half of 2023: DGCA

In the first half of 2022, 143 people working at 50 airports in India failed the alcohol tests

A total of 189 people working at 59 Indian airports were found drunk on duty in the first half of this year, marking a 32 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) increase, according to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). About half of the 189 workers who failed the mandatory alcohol tests were drivers, it said.

While many of the workers who failed the alcohol tests were employed by airport operators, a significant section of them were employed by other companies — catering companies, ground handling companies, and aircraft maintenance companies — that work at the airport.

In the first half