New Delhi, Dec 10(KNS): The Ministry of Civil Aviation on Tuesday ordered a 10 per cent reduction in IndiGo’s flight operations following widespread cancellations triggered by an acute pilot shortage under the new flight duty limitation rules.

The directive came hours after aviation regulator DGCA asked the airline to trim its operations by 5 per cent.

Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu said the curtailment was necessary to stabilise IndiGo’s operations and reduce cancellations.

He said the airline must continue serving all its existing destinations while following ministry directives, including fare capping and passenger convenience measures.

Naidu said passengers had faced major inconvenience last week due to IndiGo’s internal mismanagement of crew rosters and schedules.

IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers was summoned again on Tuesday and informed that all refunds for flights affected till December 6 had been processed, with instructions to expedite remaining refunds and baggage handovers.(KNS).