BHUBANESWAR: IndiGo cancellations, which has left thousands stranded and frustrated at terminals in several cities, has not even spared the cricketers with India and South Africa players being compelled to fly by other airlines or charter flights to arrive in Bhubaneswar for their T20 match at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack on December 9.
Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) sources said amid flight disruptions, some players like Hardik Pandya travelled to Bhubaneswar by Air India flights on Saturday night and those who played the ODI in Visakhapatnam will be brought in a special flight on Sunday.
“Akasa Air’s Boeing aircraft that operates between Bengaluru and Bhubaneswar will reach here on Sunday morning. It is expected to make two trips to Visakhapatnam for the officials’ and players’ journey to Bhubaneswar,” said BPIA sources.
Most of the players are expected to arrive here within 24 hours and then participate in the practice sessions at Barabati Stadium.
Amid widespread disruptions, several flights were cancelled and delayed at BPIA on the day. “Till the evening, 10 departures and seven arrivals were cancelled and most of the IndiGo flights were delayed,” said BPIA director Prasanna Pradhan.
Meanwhile, the chaos continued to test the passengers’ patience with many unable to find even their luggage. “We arrived here on December 2 but so far haven’t got our luggage. A patient underwent a bypass surgery recently and travelled with us. His medicines and prescriptions are in the luggage and there is no trace of it yet,” said a passenger, who arrived here from Pune in a group to visit Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri.
The group members have been purchasing new clothes every day and the frequent flight cancellations have also forced them to extend their stay in the city. As cancellations mounted, fares turned punishing too, leaving the passengers in further distress.
“Over `35,000 ticket fare for a Bhubaneswar to Delhi flight on Saturday. Who is listening?” posted a user on X and tagged Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Ministry of Civil Aviation.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has invoked airfare regulations to control the surge in ticket prices after the IndiGo fiasco. But it has had no impact.