New Delhi: The Centre is likely to seek the resignation of IndiGo CEO Peter Elbers after the poor handling of the airline's new rules on pilots led to chaos across the country in the last three days. Several IndiGo flights have been cancelled or delayed in the last couple of days, leading to anger among passengers throughout airports in India.

According to sources, not only is the Centre seeking the removal of Elbers, but it is also considering imposing a heavy penalty on IndiGo for the meltdown. The report added that the flight allotment across various sectors might be "culled”.

Indigo accused of running overstretched schedule

The Centre may ask the airline to operate as many flights as it can, including staff with a complete crew. In recent times, Indigo has also been accused of running an overstretched schedule. Even as the Civil Aviation Ministry has summoned IndiGo officials for another round of meetings, the ministry is also looking to brief officials of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) of the entire matter. With the crisis continuing to persist. More actions are expected against the airline, the report added.

Centre introduces airfare caps

In the meantime, the Centre introduced airfare caps amid IndiGo flight disruptions. Notably, with a lesser number of flights on certain routes, flight tickets for certain destinations have surged. The ministry said it has invoked regulatory powers to ensure fair and reasonable fares in all routes that have been affected. Issuing a statement, the minister said that the limits would remain in place till the situation is stabilised.

"An official directive has been issued to all airlines mandating strict adherence to the fare caps that have now been prescribed," it added. However, specific details about the airfare caps have not yet been ascertained.

Centre puts airfares in range of Rs 7,500 and Rs 18,000

Notably, the Centre has put the airfares in the range of Rs 7,500 to Rs 18,000. The fares depends on the distances that airlines fly. The decision was taken amid increasing air ticket prices amid IndiGo flight disruptions.

The order, however, did not make it clear on whether the rcaps are applicable only for economy class tickets or both economy as well as  premium economy class tickets.