Manipur has taken another decisive step in strengthening its lifeline to the rest of India, as the state government expands air connectivity and renews its push for affordable fares. With Chief Minister N. Biren Singh flagging off SpiceJet’s new direct services linking Imphal with Guwahati, Kolkata and Mumbai, the state is positioning aviation as both a practical necessity and a strategic driver of recovery in a region where roads have often been unreliable and ticket prices painfully high.
A New Carrier Touches Down in Imphal
SpiceJet’s entry into Manipur marks a significant shift in the state’s aviation landscape. From February 10, 2026, the low cost carrier is operating daily Boeing 737 services connecting Imphal to Kolkata, Guwahati and Mumbai. The flights from Kolkata and Guwahati are non stop, while passengers from Mumbai travel on a single aircraft with a brief stopover in Kolkata, avoiding the inconvenience of an aircraft change.
For Imphal, which has long relied on a limited mix of airlines and constrained schedules, the arrival of another national carrier is more than a symbolic milestone. It substantially increases capacity in and out of the state, improves schedule choice for residents and visitors, and deepens the network of connections that link Manipur to India’s financial and cultural hubs.
The decision to use Boeing 737 aircraft, rather than smaller regional planes, also reflects confidence in sustained demand. These narrow body jets offer higher seat counts, which can help moderate average fares when combined with consistent load factors. For many Manipuris who have watched airfares climb in recent years, that added capacity is not simply about convenience, but about affordability and access.
Flag Off Ceremony Highlights Connectivity and Inclusion
The new SpiceJet services were formally inaugurated at Bir Tikendrajit International Airport in Imphal, where Chief Minister N. Biren Singh ceremonially flagged off the flights in the presence of senior state officials, legislators and airport authorities. The event blended symbolism with concrete policy messaging, underscoring that improved air links are central to the state’s development vision.
Addressing the gathering, the Chief Minister framed the enhanced connectivity as part of a broader push to align Manipur with the national agenda of a more developed and integrated India. He stressed that air travel has effectively become the primary route in and out of the state for many residents amid continuing constraints on highway movement, making predictable and reasonably priced flights essential rather than optional.
The ceremony itself carried several gestures designed to signal the importance of the new routes to ordinary passengers. The Chief Minister personally handed boarding passes to early travellers on the inaugural services, while elected representatives from multiple constituencies joined airport and security officials for ribbon cutting and traditional lighting of candles. The message from the state government was clear: the expansion of flight options is intended to benefit every segment of Manipuri society.
From Scarce Seats to Multiple Options
SpiceJet’s debut builds on a staged expansion of air connectivity that has gathered pace since early 2025. At that time, Alliance Air, backed by a viability gap funding arrangement with the Manipur government, launched services linking Imphal with Kolkata, Guwahati and Dimapur in Nagaland. Those flights were introduced explicitly to tackle high fares and limited capacity, with the state capping ticket prices at a maximum of 5,000 rupees on the supported routes.
The Alliance Air initiative was both a response to crisis and a test case. With road travel hampered by security concerns and disruptions along key highways, a large share of the valley’s population began depending almost entirely on flights to reach other parts of India. Demand for seats surged, and with only a handful of operators on crucial routes, last minute fares from Imphal to major cities often soared to several times the levels seen elsewhere in the Northeast.
By underwriting part of the operational risk through viability gap funding and putting a defined cap on fares, the state aimed to prove that more frequent flights at moderate prices were commercially workable. That experiment appears to have helped build the case for a broader market response. Now, with SpiceJet adding daily Boeing 737 services to some of the same key destinations, passengers are beginning to see a more competitive, multi airline environment emerge.
Chief Minister’s Call: Expand Connectivity, Keep Fares in Check
Even as new flights are launched, the Manipur government has been vocal about one central concern: that connectivity gains must not be undermined by prohibitive fares. In recent years, Chief Minister Biren Singh and senior state officials have repeatedly urged the Ministry of Civil Aviation to examine the ticket pricing structure on routes to and from Imphal, warning that citizens are paying many times more than travellers in neighbouring states for comparable distances.
In a series of communications and public statements, the state has highlighted cases where economy tickets on short sectors such as Imphal to Guwahati reportedly climbed far above typical regional levels, while long haul sectors like Imphal to Delhi occasionally approached price points that placed them beyond the reach of most families. The Chief Minister has previously called on the central government to send technical teams to study the issue and ensure that airlines are not exploiting capacity constraints to push prices too high.
Against that backdrop, the flag off of SpiceJet’s Imphal services has been framed not just as an expansion of flights, but as part of a broader campaign to normalise fares. The Chief Minister used the occasion to once again appeal to airlines to regularly review their pricing policies, keep tariffs within a reasonable band, and treat Northeastern passengers equitably with those in other parts of India. For a state acutely aware that air travel has become a basic lifeline for students, medical patients and small business owners, the politics of price are inseparable from the celebration of new routes.
Aviation as a Lifeline in a Difficult Period
The urgency behind Manipur’s push for better and more affordable connectivity reflects the state’s unique recent experience. Over the past two years, social unrest and security challenges have periodically disrupted movement along core highways, including arterial routes to neighbouring states and to the rest of India. For many residents in the Imphal valley and beyond, particularly those requiring access to education, healthcare and employment in larger cities, flying has shifted from being a convenience to being the only viable option.
This intense reliance on air links has amplified the impact of every cancelled flight, every full departure and every surge in ticket prices. For families trying to send children to universities, for patients needing specialist treatment in Kolkata, Delhi or Mumbai, and for traders balancing slim profit margins, the cost of a seat can spell the difference between opportunity and exclusion.
It is in this context that initiatives like the state supported Alliance Air routes and the new SpiceJet services carry such symbolic and practical weight. The government’s message is that connectivity must be reliable all year round, resilient to seasonal disruptions, and accessible to people far beyond the elite. For many Manipuris, every additional daily rotation added to the departure board at Imphal airport translates into reduced vulnerability and expanded choices.
Tourism, Trade and the Wider Northeast Network
Beyond immediate mobility for residents, the latest expansion of air services is being framed as a catalyst for tourism and commerce. By linking Imphal more directly with Kolkata, Guwahati and Mumbai, the state plugs more firmly into an emerging network of Northeast focused routes that open up multi stop itineraries for both domestic and international visitors.
For leisure travellers, easier access to Manipur means lower friction for trips to the state’s hill destinations, Loktak Lake and the culturally rich Imphal valley. Tour operators have long argued that unpredictable schedules and high airfares discouraged potential visitors who might otherwise have combined Manipur with neighbouring states as part of a longer Northeast circuit. Regular, daily services from major gateways are expected to make it easier to design and market such itineraries.
For traders and small manufacturers, improved air connectivity shortens supply chains and reduces the time and uncertainty involved in reaching markets. Perishable goods, high value handicrafts and small consignments that depend on speed to justify their costs can move more efficiently when there are multiple daily flights offering reliable belly hold capacity. Over time, this can encourage new business models that are less dependent on long, risk laden road journeys.
Airlines Balance Commercial Reality and Social Responsibility
For airlines like SpiceJet, the Imphal launch is part of a broader strategic push into underserved regional markets where rising demand and supportive government policies can offset operational challenges. The Northeast has been a focus area under national connectivity schemes that seek to spread economic growth beyond India’s established aviation hubs. Incentives, route support and long term commitments to infrastructure have all played a role in making these routes more attractive.
At the same time, carriers must navigate the tension between commercial viability and social expectations. Operating costs on regional routes can be high, driven by factors such as fuel, fleet allocation, crew logistics and load fluctuations. Airlines argue that dynamic pricing helps them manage these variables, but the resulting fare spikes during peak periods often draw political and public criticism, especially in states where flying has become essential rather than aspirational.
By entering Imphal with daily flights and aligning its messaging with the state’s narrative of inclusive growth, SpiceJet is implicitly acknowledging that success in such markets will be judged not only by load factors and yields, but also by perceptions of fairness and reliability. The carrier’s commitment to providing seamless single aircraft connections from Mumbai, and its emphasis on supporting students, medical travellers and business communities, suggest that it is positioning these routes as long term investments in both brand and regional goodwill.
What Expanded Connectivity Means for the Future of Manipur
As Manipur’s flight board fills with more destinations and more logos, the state’s aviation story is shifting from scarcity to choice. The combination of state backed services and private carrier expansion is gradually weaving a more resilient network that can buffer residents and businesses against shocks, whether they arise from local disruptions or wider economic trends.
In the short term, the immediate test will be whether increased capacity translates into more stable and affordable fares. If competition, combined with ongoing pressure from the state and scrutiny from national regulators, succeeds in tempering price volatility, the new SpiceJet routes could help reset expectations about what it costs to travel to and from Manipur.
In the longer term, sustained connectivity has the potential to reshape how Manipur participates in the national economy and how it is perceived by visitors, investors and the wider public. More frequent and better linked flights make it easier for talent to move in both directions, for events to be hosted in the state, and for Manipuri culture and enterprise to be more visible beyond regional boundaries.
For now, as passengers board the new daily services to Kolkata, Guwahati and Mumbai, the expansion of air connectivity feels like a tangible step toward that future. Each departure from Imphal represents more than a routine takeoff. It carries with it the aspirations of a state determined to stay connected, competitive and inclusive, even in challenging times, and a clear message from its leadership that the skies must remain open not only to more flights, but to fairer fares for all.