From correspondents in Delhi, India, 08:30 PM IST

India's cash-strapped national carrier Air India Saturday announced special fares for select domestic destinations, hoping the low fares would 'improve the load factor'.

The special fares will apply for travel to Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. Tickets can be booked between June 27 and July 3 and will be valid up to Sep 10, an airline official said.

'This will help us improve our load factor during the monsoon season, which is generally low,' the official said.

Under the special fares, a Mumbai-Kolkata ticket would cost Rs.2,729 while the fare for the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Kolkata sectors would be Rs.2,479.

Similarly, a passenger can fly from Mumbai to Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad for Rs.2,479.

Air India, which incurred a loss of Rs.4,000 crore last fiscal, is now seeking a Rs.10,000-crore (about $2 billion) bailout package from the central government.

The airline management has hinted that it would cut salaries of its about 31,000 employees as part of its cost cutting measures.

However, employees union leaders have made it clear that they would protest against any move to slash salaries. Both sides held two meetings this week to discuss the airline's cost cutting proposals, but failed to reach any consensus.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)