The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday dismissed four Flight Operations Inspectors (FOIs) in connection with the recent IndiGo flight cancellation crisis.
According to a notice issued by the DGCA, the inspectors relieved from their duties are Rish Raj Chatterjee, Seema Jhamnani, Anil Kumar Pokhariyal and Priyam Kaushik.
The notice said, “Consequent upon approval of the Competent Authority, the following FOIs under various categories, on a contract basis, are hereby relieved from the DGCA with immediate effect to join their respective parent organisations: Rish Raj Chatterjee, Consultant, Deputy Chief Flight Operations Inspector; Seema Jhamnani, Senior Flight Operations Inspector; Anil Kumar Pokhariyal, Consultant Flight Operations; and Priyam Kaushik, Consultant Flight Operations.”
A special four-member Committee of the DGCA will meet IndiGo Chief Executive Officer Pieter Elbers today to question him over the widespread flight cancellations reported over the past week.
The Committee, set up to examine the disruptions, will look into the series of cancellations and delays that triggered chaos across major airports. The DGCA has intensified scrutiny of the airline and taken several steps to stabilise operations.
Earlier, the DGCA issued a show-cause notice to the IndiGo CEO. In its response, the airline sought additional time, saying that due to the “complexity and vast scale of operations,” it was “realistically not possible to pinpoint the exact cause(s)” at this stage.
On Monday, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu informed the Lok Sabha that flight operations were “stabilising fast,” with airports reporting no “crowding or distress,” while stressing that aviation safety remains non-negotiable.
IndiGo, acknowledging the difficulties faced by passengers, said travellers between December 3 and 5 experienced significant delays and were stranded at multiple airports due to heavy congestion. The airline has offered travel vouchers worth ₹10,000 to severely impacted passengers, redeemable for any IndiGo journey within the next 12 months.
