Woman Carrying Father's Ashes Stranded at Bengaluru Airport Amid IndiGo Flight Cancellation Crisis

Namita finds herself stranded at Kempegowda International Airport amidst the ongoing crisis.

Nationwide flight disruptions attributed to an "operational crisis" at IndiGo have left thousands of passengers stranded, forcing many to miss crucial personal, medical, and religious commitments. Bengaluru airport reported 52 arrivals and 50 departures cancelled on Thursday, significantly up from 41 arrivals and 32 departures cancelled the previous day.

Among the thousands affected is Namita, who remains stranded at Kempegowda International Airport as IndiGo's flight disruptions continue for the fourth consecutive day. Clutching an urn containing her father's ashes, Namita makes an emotional appeal to government authorities to help her reach Haridwar "urgently."

"I'm carrying my father's ashes with me. I was scheduled to fly from Bengaluru to Delhi to Dehradun today. From there, I need to travel to Haridwar to immerse my father's ashes tomorrow," Namita explained.

"IndiGo cancelled the flight without any advance notification. Now they're claiming they have no flights available today and suggesting we book with other airlines. These other carriers have drastically increased their prices, reaching as high as Rs 60,000 per person, which is beyond what I can afford for our group of five," she added.

Namita further stated that no train or bus tickets are currently available. Her family had already secured train tickets from Haridwar to Jodhpur, her hometown.

"We're unable to reach Haridwar. All our reservations have been wasted. We're told a partial refund will be processed after a week, with no clarity on how much will be deducted. I urgently request the government to arrange transportation for me to reach Haridwar as my father's ashes need to be immersed without delay."

The flight cancellations have disrupted lives across various circumstances. In another case, a newly married couple was forced to attend their own reception virtually after being unable to travel from Bhubaneswar to Bengaluru.

The newlyweds, who had booked tickets from Bhubaneswar to Bengaluru and onward to Hubballi for December 2, found themselves stranded when their flights faced repeated delays from 9 am on Tuesday until early Wednesday morning, ultimately resulting in cancellation on December 3.

Bengaluru airport alone witnessed 52 arrivals and 50 departures cancelled on Thursday, marking a substantial increase from the 41 arrivals and 32 departures cancelled on December 4.

"We Will Take Care": IndiGo Issues Apology

"To each one of our customers - We are truly sorry and we will take care!!!" IndiGo declared in a social media statement after all flights departing from Delhi were cancelled until midnight.

Taking responsibility for the situation, IndiGo promised to do everything possible to assist passengers and restore normal operations as quickly as possible.

Attributing the widespread cancellations to an "operational crisis," IndiGo assured that all refunds for cancelled flights would be automatically processed through the original payment methods.

"We will offer full waivers on all cancellations and rescheduling requests for bookings with travel dates between December 5 and December 15. We have arranged thousands of hotel rooms across cities and organized ground transportation for our customers' convenience. We're working to ensure food and refreshments are provided to waiting passengers at airports, and lounge access is being arranged for senior citizens wherever possible," the airline's statement concluded.