The Supreme Court issued a notice on a public interest litigation (PIL) contesting “opaque, exploitative and algorithm-driven” pricing practices in India’s civil aviation industry and raising concerns about the decrease in passenger freebaggage limitations. After hearing the plea by social activist S. Laxminarayanan, a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta requested answers from the Center, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERAI) within four weeks.
Together with AoR Charu Mathur and advocate Abhinav Verma, senior advocate Ravindra Srivastava argued on behalf of the petitioner that air travel, which is considered an essential service under the Essential Services Maintenance Act, has become more and more expensive as a result of “unregulated, unpredictable and exploitative” fare mechanisms. The PIL contended that passengers with urgent medical, educational, or professional travel demands are disproportionately impacted by abrupt pricing increases caused by opaque algorithms, last-minute fees, and the unilateral reduction of free check-in baggage allowances from 25 kg to 15 kg.
According to the statement, “airfare can double or even triple within hours due to opaque, algorithm-driven dynamic pricing mechanisms adopted by airlines,” which disproportionately affects people who are unable to make advance plans, such as migrant workers, patients, and students. The appeal cited incidents in which rates increased “four to six times within hours” during major festivals like Maha Kumbh and crises like the Pahalgam terror incident.
