Specially-Abled Child Denied Boarding On Indigo, Airlines Fined 5 Lakh
Ranchi: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Saturday imposed a
a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on IndiGo airline for denying boarding to a specially-abled child at Ranchi Airport in Jharkhand.
IndiGo denied a specially-abled child from boarding an aircraft at Ranchi airport as he was in a “state of panic,” officials said. The incident happened on May 7.
The aviation regulator DGCA has launched an investigation and requested the airline to submit a report on the same.
It is to be noted that since the youngster was not allowed to board the airline’s Ranchi-Hyderabad aircraft on Saturday, his parents chose not to board as well.
When asked about the incident, IndiGo Airlines said, “In view of the safety of passengers, a specially-abled child could not board the flight with his family on May 7, as he was in a state of panic. The ground staff waited for him to calm down till the last minute but to no avail.”
In order to make the family feel comfortable, the airline booked a hotel stay for the family and ensured that they flew to their destination the very next day.
The airline further added a statement, “We regret the inconvenience caused to the passengers. IndiGo prides itself on being an inclusive organisation, be it for employees or its customers; and over 75,000 specially-abled passengers fly with IndiGo every month.”