The local governments of Karnali Province have demanded the federal government to implement online tickets for air services in the region stating that the air passengers in the province were struggling to avail air service.
Chief District Officer (CDO) of Mugu, Rom Bahadur Mahat, shared that the local government has requested the Ministry of Home Affairs and other agencies to take necessary initiatives to solve the problem of air transport faced by the people living in remote areas in the province.
They have demanded that the online ticket system be put in place at the earliest for easy air services for the people of Humla, Mugu, Dolpa and Jumla districts, among other, remote mountainous districts.
Although Gamgadi– the district headquarters of Humla–is linked with roadways, road transportation has not been regular and reliable owing to geographical remoteness and bad condition of road, said CDO Mahat, adding that air service is the only alternative means of transportation for ill people, people with disability, children and senior citizens.
In the absence of online tickets for air service, there has been an increase in black marketeering lately. Unnecessary crowds of people to buy tickets has increased challenges to provide peace and security, shared Mahat.
Passengers have to suffer severely due to the inconvenience and monopoly of certain airline companies operating flights in Karnali Province which are yet to streamline the ticket system, the CDO said. “If an online ticket system is put in place and air services are operated regularly and in accordance with the ratio of passenger flow then the citizens here would avail service conveniently,” he opined.
Earlier, an all-party meeting attended by chief district officers of the remote districts in Karnali Province had decided on operating an online ticket system for air service but to no avail.
