India’s aviation sector faces mounting criticism as IndiGo’s operational crisis enters its fifth day, culminating in over 400 flight cancellations that have stranded thousands of passengers across major airports. The situation has escalated from mere travel inconvenience to profound human tragedy, with one particularly heartbreaking case emerging from Guwahati’s Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport.
A widow from Shillong found herself trapped in the travel chaos while transporting her husband’s embalmed body to Kolkata for burial. Speaking with measured composure that barely concealed her distress, she revealed the critical time sensitivity of her situation: “I have come all the way from Shillong to transport my husband’s body. Until now, we have no information whether their flight is going to take off or not.” The embalmed body has a 48-hour window set to expire on Sunday at 4pm, raising urgent questions about responsibility and accountability.
Social media platforms have become the primary documentation channel for the widespread disruption. Viral videos from multiple airports show chaotic scenes with frustrated passengers demanding answers from severely understaffed airport personnel. At Hyderabad Airport, travelers noted that proactive communication could have mitigated the situation, while at Mumbai Airport, passengers reported being shuffled between gates with conflicting information and repeated false boarding announcements.
One Reddit user detailed their experience on a New Delhi to Mumbai flight delayed over three hours: “The delay itself wasn’t even the main problem. The issue was how badly they handled it. They shifted us from Gate 23 to Gate 40, made us wait for almost an hour at both places, and kept displaying the wrong information. Every 20 minutes there was the same announcement ‘We are about to board.’ They were so understaffed… literally one employee was handling everything.”
The crisis has sparked outrage on social media platforms, with users directly tagging India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation and Directorate General of Civil Aviation demanding accountability. Critics highlight the airline’s apparent disregard for passenger welfare and the absence of effective contingency planning. IndiGo has indicated that normal operations might resume by February 10, though this offers little consolation to those currently affected by what has become both an operational failure and a human rights concern.