Travelling can be a stressful experience, especially if you’re met with long immigration queues upon arrival or departure. India’s busiest airports, Delhi and Mumbai, have been experiencing some of the worst queues, leaving many international passengers frustrated and sharing their plight on social media. The Union home ministry recently held a meeting on the issue, recognising that it’s time for a change.
One of the main reasons for the long queues has been unmanned counters, causing delays in processing. While biometrics were implemented late last year to speed up the process, the immigration software was yet to be updated. This has led to massive queues at Mumbai’s airport since late last year, and the processing time at Delhi’s IGIA has also gone up recently.
The home ministry has recognised the need for intervention to resolve these issues, as the travel industry anticipates a surge in international travel this summer. With immigration and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) being key agencies at airports, the ministry has reviewed the issues at Delhi’s airport, with a focus on Terminal 3 where queues continue to take longer than the ideal waiting time.
The meeting was attended by all stakeholders, including officials of Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), the Bureau of Immigration, Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, and the Central Industrial Security Force. The government is eager to improve the waiting time at key airports, as India continues to emerge as a key market and arrivals and departures at airports are set to only rise further.
The focus is to match the airport infrastructure, layout, security check process, and immigration management with the anticipated increase in air traffic. With this intention in mind, international travellers at India’s airports can look forward to a smoother experience in the near future.
