IndiGo’s Kolkata ops: Sunday worse than Saturday with 76 cancellations
Times of India | 8 December 2025
Kolkata: IndiGo Airlines cancelled even more flights in Kolkata on Sunday than it did the previous day, deepening uncertainty among flyers scheduled to travel early this week. The disruption stretched into its sixth consecutive day, despite a govt ultimatum issued on Saturday evening directing the airline to stabilise operations within 48 hours. By Sunday night, IndiGo itself hinted that normalcy might return only by Dec 10 — Wednesday.
IndiGo cancelled 172 flights in Kolkata on Friday. The number dropped to 53 on Saturday, raising hopes of gradual improvement. But those hopes were short-lived. On Sunday, Kolkata airport authorities posted on a microblogging platform that the airline was scrapping 76 flights to and from the city — 53 departures and 23 arrivals — leaving passengers, travel agents, and even airline staff searching for answers. IndiGo said it planned to operate 129 departures and 97 arrivals through the day.
"We expected the situation to improve on Sunday," said an airline staffer. "With the govt asking IndiGo to return to normal operations by Monday evening, there could be another mini reset on Monday to get the roster firmly in place."
Flyers, however, were bracing for more turbulence. Ipsita Sinha, 22, a professional singer from Agartala, flew in for a performance and was scheduled to return home on Sunday for another show. "My flight was at 2 pm. On Saturday, I got a message rescheduling it to 7 pm. On Sunday morning, I woke up to find it cancelled," she said. "Now they've moved my flight to 8 am on Monday. I can't afford another day at a hotel."
For many, the financial shock was as jarring as cancellations. Adhiraj Roy, a dentist from Deshapriya Park, had an evening flight to Bengaluru to resume hospital duties on Monday. "I booked my ticket long ago. The flight was cancelled abruptly, and I had no choice but to buy a fresh ticket for Rs 26,000," he said.
Ashish Saha, from Jirat, tried since Saturday to reach Delhi for a family crisis. "Yesterday the one-way fare was Rs 50,000. Today I found a ticket for Rs 25,000 on Air India — still steep, but much lower than IndiGo," he said.
Some said they saw available seats on IndiGo's website even as their own bookings were repeatedly pushed back. Dipanwita Sarkar of Agartala, who travelled to Kolkata for a BEd exam on Dec 4, said her return flight on Dec 5 was cancelled, leaving her stuck in the city for days.
"IndiGo needs to get its act together and behave responsibly," said Travel Agents Federation of India (East) chairman Anil Punjabi. Travel Agents Association of India (East) chairman Anjani Dhanuka said: "It has created a huge trust deficit."