Here's how the first day of resumption of domestic flights panned out

 

The resumption on Monday, of domestic commercial air services after a gap of nearly two months witnessed chaos and confusion at airports across the country.
 

But why did this happen?
 

For starters, some states restricted the number of flights just hours before departure, causing last-minute cancellations and leaving hundreds of passengers stranded.
 

New restrictions at major airports, including Mumbai and Chennai, forced airlines to scramble late on Sunday to revise schedules.
 

Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi had as many as 80 flight cancellations, infuriating passengers. It would interest you to know that Delhi airport was supposed to handle around 380 domestic flights on Monday -- 190 departures and as many 190 arrivals.
 

In Tripura, all flights at Agartala's Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport were cancelled on Monday.
 

Airlines such as IndiGo, SpiceJet, and Vistara had been preparing to resume operations on Monday with about a third of their capacity amid strict rules.
 

IndiGo had planned to start about 430 daily flights, while its low-cost rival SpiceJet said it would operate 204 flights a day and AirAsia India would start with 77.
 

However, the final number could be much lower as some states, especially those in which coronavirus cases are rising rapidly, have curtailed air travel.
 

IndiGo said on Monday it plans to fly just over 200 daily flights until May 31.
 

Passengers bound for Hyderabad from Bengaluru said their flight had been cancelled, without prior notice from Air India.
 

Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal have sought more time to restart domestic flights. Maharashtra has only allowed a few planes to take off and land every day at India’s second busiest airport in Mumbai. Andhra Pradesh will start resume flights on May 26, and West Bengal on May 28.
 

This confusion will make it even harder for airlines to recoup revenue losses running into tens of millions of dollars.
 

Potential travellers are also likely to be deterred by the lack of clarity on quarantine rules in different states.
 

The resumption of domestic flights on Monday has also paved the way for holding parliamentary committee meetings once lockdown 4.0 ends on May 31, apart from raising the prospect of Parliament holding the monsoon session as per schedule, by the third week of July.
 

Meanwhile, India has had its biggest single-day spike today, with 6,977 positive coronavirus cases being added and 156 more deaths being reported in the past 24 hours.
 

India has entered the list of the 10 most affected countries globally, overtaking Iran in total count. Maharashtra, the most affected state, has added more than 3,000 cases in a single day, taking its tally past the 50,00-mark.