Long Queues Return At Delhi International Airport, Parliamentary Panel Raises Concern

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Weeks after Aviation Minister assured that Delhi Airport has solved the issue of long queues at immigration, and security checkpoints, air travellers have raised the concern again, stating that it has become a nightmare for passengers travelling to and from the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi. As reported by ANI, many passengers took to social media to raise their plight of inconvenience they were facing at the airport. The passengers complained of three-hour-long queues to get clear through immigration and security at Delhi airport.

Frequent passengers travelling through Delhi airport called it a perennial problem. Simultaneously, the Parliamentary Committee has recommended that the Ministry of Civil Aviation should focus on reducing the congestion at Delhi and Mumbai Airports. On March 13, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture tabled its report on the Ministry of Civil Aviation in Parliament, reports ANI.

The committee said that MoCA should focus on the expansion of terminals including the enhancement of the number of check-in counters and security check gates to facilitate the smooth movement of passengers. The Committee also stated that such capacity constraints at major airports of the country reflect poor planning and urges the Ministry to issue necessary guidelines to the concerned airport operators. 

In December last year, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia made a surprise visit to Terminal 3 of the IGI airport in Delhi amid complaints of congestion and overcrowding and also held meeting with concerned stakeholders to overcome the issue.

"This problem is eternal. I have stopped being an optimist when a problem needs to be solved via a politician. Till we have politicians who are interested in garnering media attention, nothing concrete will change on the ground," reported ANI, quoting Mohit, a passenger.

Another passenger Manas said, "The worst airport of all time! Not sure who gives them the best award and they flaunt about it ... my experiences with Delhi international have always been horrible, the apathy of the officials is even more appealing, blore airport is much better comparatively."