What is bad news for long-distance bus operators has been good news for private airlines. They have cashed in on the one-week blockage of Prithbi Highway to Pokhara and Tribhuban Rajpath to Hetauda after landslides. Almost all airlines have doubled, if not tripled, their flights. Simara tops the domestic destinations with nearly 20 flights on some days this week. The rise in traffic has come

with a corresponding increase in allegations that airlines are gouging passengers to pay double normal rates.
Airline operators admit their tickets cost double the original price, but say this is because they are doing charter operations. Many are charging one-way passengers a roundtrip fare even if they are guaranteed 100 percent occupancy on the return flight. "We are trying our every best to check this," says Birendra Basnet of Buddha Air. They have alerted their clients through the media. "It is very difficult to detect which travel agents and individuals are engaged in black marketing airline tickets, but the situation is difficult to control because desperate passengers pay the higher rates." Officials at the Civil Aviation Authority Nepal say they are aware of the problem. "We have alerted our stations to be watchful about this," CAAN's Mohan Adhikary told us.