Thiruvananthapuram ∙ Former finance minister, Dr Thomas Isaac, highlighted the difference between the airfares of Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram airports. “How lucky are the people of Kochi?” In a Facebook post starting with, Thomas Isaac pointed out the huge difference between the airfares of the two airports.
Thomas Isaac said “the difference in fares between Kochi Airport, which is controlled by the Kerala government, and Thiruvananthapuram Airport, which is controlled by a private company, is a good case study.” Meanwhile, a section of people has come forward pointing out that Thomas Isaac’s post contains half-truths and is misleading.
Thomas Isaac begins his note by noting that the charge for going from Kochi to Hyderabad today is Rs 5,171. He pointed out that the ride from Thiruvananthapuram to Hyderabad is Rs 9,295. His post enumerates the rate differences including this one. Many people commented below the post saying, “Did you notice this difference when you lost your ministry?” Noteworthy is the comment by Awam Surur, who set out the figures of this group.
Full text of Thomas Isaac’s note
How lucky are the people of Kochi? Today’s ticket fare from Kochi to Hyderabad is Rs 5171.9295 from Thiruvananthapuram to Hyderabad. This difference was realized when I bought a ticket to attend the Southfest federalism seminar in Hyderabad. When I researched all flights from Thiruvananthapuram they have a much higher charge than Kochi.
For example, the cost of the ticket from Kochi to Bengaluru is Rs 1496 today. 5033 if it comes from Thiruvananthapuram. If you go to Chennai or from Kochi, Rs 2119 is enough. If from Thiruvananthapuram you have to pay Rs 4926. Now in Delhi? 8478 of Kochi. 12,593 from Thiruvananthapuram.
Not a small difference. All figures belong to Indigo Airlines. So it cannot be said that the airline is looting. The robbery is at the airport. There is no user charge in Kochi. In Thiruvananthapuram, the user fare is Rs 598 for domestic flights and Rs 1260 for international flights. However, this difference is not fully explained. Maybe it’s the difference in the fares charged by the airport by the airlines.
A good case study is the difference between Kochi Airport, which is under the control of the Kerala government, and Thiruvananthapuram Airport, which is under the control of a private company. What it was, prominent people like Shashi Tharoor were arguing that if Adani comes, he will be at Thiruvananthapuram airport. And now? Even a year after the acquisition of Adani, there were no differences in the airport facilities.
Why, pre-Covid flights have not even been resumed. If you are traveling from Thiruvananthapuram, you will have to pay double the fare. If this is for domestic flights, how much for international flights! It’s amazing that no one doubts that. Adani Airport Company should explain why this difference.
Awam Surur’s comment on Isaac’s post
This was the situation even before Adani took over. The status quo continues at private airports not detected by Adani and at public sector airports not detected by Adani. Perhaps Sir Isaac does not know the number of factors that influence the air fare. However, you are not a person who does not know that there are several factors. So the intention is to mislead. For instance,
There are 5 flights a day from Kochi to Hyderabad (average 900+ seats) and only 1 flight from Thiruvananthapuram (average 180 seats).
There are 8 flights per day from Kochi to Delhi (average 1516+ seats) and only 2 flights from Thiruvananthapuram (average 360 seats).
There are 16 flights per day from Kochi to Bengaluru (average 2880+ seats) and only 3 flights from Thiruvananthapuram (average 540 seats).
There are 5 flights per day from Kochi to Chennai (average 900+ seats) and only 3 flights from Thiruvananthapuram (average 540 seats).
Kozhikode also has a similar situation to the one shown above.
In short, Kochi is the hub of domestic services in Kerala. Of course, the ticket fare will be lower in Kochi as there are more seats. Ticket fares for Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode are higher due to reduced seats. In addition, both of these airports have passenger traffic potential. Of course, if the seats are reduced, the fare will increase. Malaysians traveling to the fair are forced to travel via Kochi.
While the rules of the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority apply to airport fares, private airports are often able to offer many other concessions to airline operators. It is done by Kochi Airport Management. But Thiruvananthapuram, who was in the public sector, was unable to do this, and Kozhikode, who is still in the public sector, was unable to do so.
Now, if the state government could intervene in this matter at any level, the government should have intervened fairly. The last government when you were finance minister called a meeting of airline operators and announced 39 new services, but took care not to give even one at Kozhikode airport which is in the public sector. Although name-only services were allowed in Thiruvananthapuram, more services were provided in Kannur and Kochi. In short, this post is not well intentioned.
Much of what is said in this is false and half-truths. NB: I am not a person who blindly accepts Adanitization in the name of Privatization. But this post is misleading.
Summary in English: Dr. Thomas Isaac’s FB post on the difference in airfare to Kochi and Trivandrum
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