India now allows you to avail a discount on flight ticket if you are not carrying a check-in baggage

• As the new rule comes into play, the airlines will be able to provide tickets at lower rates to those passengers who carry cabin baggage only.
• In order to avail the discount, you will have to declare the weight of baggage that you will be carrying at the time of the booking.
• The regulator also allowed unbundling of other services like preferential seating, meal-snack-drink charges, airline lounges, sports equipment charges and musical instrument charges, among others.
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India’s civil aviation regulator has asked airlines to give concessions in ticket prices to passengers who are carrying cabin baggage only, for domestic flights.

The current rules allow passengers to carry up to 7 kilograms of cabin baggage and 15 kilograms of check-in baggage.

After these new rules, the airlines will be able to provide tickets at lower rates to those passengers who opt to carry just cabin baggage within a permissible limit. The regulator has not clarified when these new rules will come into effect.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) also clarified that if any passenger with a discount ticket turns up with baggage will be charged as applicable. It further added that these applicable charges should be reasonable and prominently displayed to the passenger when booking the ticket.


In order to avail the discount, you will have to declare the weight of the cabin baggage that you will be carrying at the time of the booking.

"As part of airline baggage policy, scheduled airlines will be allowed to offer free baggage allowance as well as "zero baggage/no check-in baggage fares". This will be subject to the condition that the passenger booking ticket under such fare scheme is made aware of the charges that shall be applicable if the passenger turns up with the baggage for check in at the airline counter," DGCA said in a statement.

The regulator also allowed unbundling of other services like preferential seating, meal-snack-drink charges, airline lounges, sports equipment charges and musical instrument charges, among others. However, the rates for these unbundled services will be decided by the operator.

"On the basis of various feedback received, it is felt that many times these services provided by the airlines may not be required by the passengers while travelling. Considering the fact that unbundling of services and charges thereto has the potential to make basic fare more affordable and provide consumer an option of paying for the services which he/she wishes to avail, it has been decided by the government to allow these services to be unbundled and charged separately on opt-in basis," it further added.

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