Flag carrier Air India has taken the unusual step of designated a row of seats for lone female travellers after reports of groping incidents on flights.
From January 18, the third row of six seats in economy will be reserved for women only if they are travelling alone.
The move was sparked by two recent incidents involving groping.
A woman said she was molested by a male passenger on a flight from Mumbai to Newark on December 21 and two weeks later a female flight attendant complained a passenger had ‘touched her inappropriately.’
A middle-aged man was arrested for the latter incident.
"In-flight misbehaviour is on the rise in recent times. Our pilots adopt zero tolerance for offences like sexual harassment, both of air hostesses or flyers, and hand over offenders to law enforcing agencies on landing," an airline official told the Times of India.
It has been welcomed by some but also criticised as being unworkable.
"It is an impractical move and will lead to gender discrimination," said D. Sudhakara Reddy, national president of Air Passengers Association of India.
