This column captures the essence of contemporary air travel in India. It is, as the author says, the fellow passengers who are the worst behaved of all the people inside an Indian airport. One is left fuming and feeling like an idiot when a lot of snooty fellow travelers cut in front as if its their right to do so! The other day I was standing in a really long serpentine queue for security check at the Delhi airport and there was this Haryanavi (gentle?)man whose behavior made me wonder if it was really a state transport bus that I was waiting to board. I think AAI can do something about halting unruly behavior by the general Indian public inside one of their airports.
RE:Truth truth nothing but the truth
by Ravikant on Jan 05, 2007 10:25 AM Permalink
The author has rightly canted the woes of an air traveller.But if we were to ask whether air travel in India would become comfortable, the answer would be in the negative. Air Travel is no longer the prirority of only the rich. Like all else it has become pedestrian. Due to the huge population seeking out hassle free travel,and the general inclination to get their work done quickly, airtravel has become a necessity. It is only in the mind of the Govt that this change is not reflected. Our country needs large number of airports to handle the large traffic.There are no spaces left within our large urban centers forcing these airports out into the country.Such a situation calls for a seperate infrastucture for ferrying passengers to and from the airports. In the absence of this infrastucture the hapless passengers are left at the mercy of the profiteering taxi operators and their minions. The cult that an air passenger is to be fleeced mercilessly by all, has to go. The deterioration of the airport environment forces the passenger to shed any restraint adding woe to the miserable situation. One can only hope that the Govt does something fast else the misery will persist.
