Tricity residents who were planning to travel out of station on Wednesday had a hard day deciding which mode of travel to opt for as reaching the Chandigarh railway station became an impossible task due to elaborate security arrangements around the station while airfares saw an unprecedented surge.
The flights between Chandigarh and Delhi, which usually cost between Rs 1,600 and Rs 3,000, were priced at Rs 8,000 on Wednesday.
A Spicejet ticket between Chandigarh and Delhi, scheduled for 8:25 pm, cost Rs 7,992 while a Jet Airways ticket cost Rs 6,112. Vistara and Indigo tickets cost Rs 4,719 and Rs 4,729 respectively.
According to airline officials, the airfare will remain the same (around Rs 4,729) till August 28 and will further come down to Rs 2,098 on August 29. In September, it will come down to Rs 1,688.
A Panjab University official whose daughter was to go to Chandigarh in Shatabdi Express on August 24 said, she cancelled the tour, owing to security concerns. Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation(IRCTC) officials said that many residents got their tickets cancelled at the last moment, in view of the heightened security arrangements around the railway station.
Echoing the same opinion, sources from Chandigarh railway station said that there were more cancellations than the bookings since the security around the station was enormous. Travel agents across the city stated that residents are opting for private cabs to go Delhi and other places out instead of taking a flight or a train.
{{/usCountry}}Echoing the same opinion, sources from Chandigarh railway station said that there were more cancellations than the bookings since the security around the station was enormous. Travel agents across the city stated that residents are opting for private cabs to go Delhi and other places out instead of taking a flight or a train.
{{/usCountry}}While taking the route to the Chandigarh railway station had become an impossible task for many residents, the air fares saw a sky rocketing rise on Wednesday.