TravTalk India Online Magazine
With the closure of three Agra-bound routes by IndiGo, tour operators are concerned that such decisions would impact the city’s image as a destination. Despite being home to one of the seven wonders of the world – the Taj Mahal, which draws huge global attention – the city has always faced inadequate air routes diverting visitors to other tourist hubs, they say.
Amita Pandey
Agra tourism suffered a major setback in April when IndiGo decided to cease operations of three flight routes – from Agra to Jaipur, Bhopal, and Ahmedabad – due to shortage of aircraft. Despite being a part of the Golden Triangle, Agra has been facing inadequate air routes to major cities. With the termination of three of the six IndiGo flights, Agra now has air connections only to Mumbai, Lucknow, and Bengaluru.
It is noteworthy that the Taj Mahal in Agra alone witnessed 5 million domestic visitors and approximately 3.96 lakh foreign visitors during 2023 as per Statista, a German online platform. Therefore, many travel agents are not buying the dubious claim of aircraft shortage after witnessing a full load.
Prateek Hira, Chairman, IATO Uttar Pradesh Chapter, said that one of the major reasons behind such disruptions is that Agra Airport (Kheria Airport) does not have a commercial terminal of its own and functions as an Indian Air Force base. “Until commercial terminal will not come into place in Agra, these issues will persist. Airlines initiate these flight routes after conducting a deep study about the route and load in advance. Therefore, it is not feasible to buy the argument that these routes had less load or shortage of aircraft,” he reasoned.
Impact on Agra tourism
When asked about the impact of the closure of three air routes, Hira said, “As tour operators, we face a lot of problems in case of sudden terminations, as all the plans are done in advance. The last moment changes lead to fare hikes and burden operators and travellers with extra costs. This brings everything to a halt.” Another major issue is perception. “It impacts the image of the city, based on which travellers are reluctant to travel back to the city. It also sends a negative message to the first-time traveller, as it creates distrust among tourists like in the case of Khajuraho. Subsequently, this leads to a decline in first-time foreign tourists as well because Agra is one of the mascots of destinations in India, any trip to India is incomplete without visiting the Taj Mahal in Agra. Overall, it builds a negative image of the destination,” he added.
Expressing similar views, Sunil Gupta, Chairman, IATO Northern Region, asserted, “The termination not only disrupts the connectivity, it also shakes the confidence of the operator. It affects the itineraries and other plans. It surely impacts the ease of travel, which eventually affects the footfalls to the city and surrounding regions.”
Rahul Wadhwa, President & Founder, Cal India Tours & Travels, also agreed to the fact, saying, “Such sudden termination of flights, forces people to cancel their trips, especially if they want to travel by air only.”
Pradeep Rai, Managing Director, Skyline India Travels, affirmed, “Such decisions directly impact employment, hotels and restaurants business. Moreover, it also burdens passengers financially in terms of fares and accommodation costs, and impacts productivity.”
Future ahead
Looking forward, Gupta suggested that better infrastructure will surely help in sustaining new routes, especially to tier II, and III cities. Cities like Agra, Varanasi, and Ayodhya need better air connectivity, as there is an influx of tourist arrivals in these places, and they act as tourism hubs for Uttar Pradesh, as well as for the country.
