Dhaka: Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M Rashiduzzaman Millat announced that the government is contemplating an additional reduction in airfares for Hajj pilgrims as Biman Bangladesh Airlines expands its routes and boosts revenue. The announcement came during a parliamentary session where the minister responded to queries from lawmakers about airfare policies.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the minister mentioned that Biman's airfare for Hajj pilgrims, which was initially around Tk 2 lakh, was reduced to Tk 1.65 lakh by the interim government. Last year, dynamic pricing helped bring down the airfare to Tk 154,000, and it has further decreased to Tk 130,000 this year. The government is considering additional reductions based on Biman's aircraft procurement plans and the full operation of its flight routes.
The parliamentary session, chaired by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad, Bir Bikram, began at 3:30 pm. Minister Millat emphasized that if Biman's routes become fully operational, resulting in increased revenue, the government would consider further reducing airfares. The ticket pricing strategy will align with the practices of other airlines to ensure competitiveness.
Responding to concerns about high domestic airfares, particularly on short notice, the minister clarified that the actual fare on the Dhaka-Chattogram route is around Tk 6,400, contrary to claims of Tk 12,000 by some lawmakers. He noted that passengers also incur around 15 percent in taxes and other charges. The government has implemented measures to prevent last-minute ticket price manipulation or black-market activities, ensuring passengers can purchase tickets at official rates.
Minister Millat assured Parliament that efforts are underway to make air travel more affordable while maintaining Biman's financial sustainability. The government has adopted a zero-tolerance policy against malpractice, artificial shortages, and syndicates in the airline ticket market to keep fares affordable for Bangladeshi expatriate workers.
In response to another query, the minister explained that airfares worldwide are generally determined through dynamic pricing systems managed by airlines' revenue management systems. To protect passengers' interests, the government is amending travel agency and civil aviation laws and has issued a 10-point circular outlining directives for travel agencies.
The circular mandates travel agencies to clearly display their name, license number, and selling price on air tickets to ensure transparency. The government is also implementing initiatives from its election manifesto to offer special incentives on Biman tickets for expatriate workers, including special facilities at the Balaka Lounge, such as a separate immigration channel and priority check-in services.