The Indian government Saturday ordered airlines to cap fares as it tries to contain the fallout from one of the worst air traffic disruptions to have ensnared the country.

The country's biggest carrier, IndiGo, canceled more than 1,000 local flights on Friday, the worst day of disruptions, leaving many thousands stranded at airports nationwide.

The 20-year-old airline, which has long prided itself on on-time performance and low fees, witnessed a breakdown in operations this week. 

The challenges began after the airline failed to implement new government rules that required longer rest periods for employees and limited night flying hours for greater safety.

Indian aviation ministry orders airlines to rein in prices

Other air carriers hiked prices on popular routes amid the chaos, which led the Ministry of Civil Aviation to order price controls.

"In order to protect passengers from any form of opportunistic pricing, the Ministry has invoked its regulatory powers to ensure fair and reasonable fares across all affected routes," the statement read.

"These caps will remain in force until the situation fully stabilises," the statement said, without laying out the specifics.  

IndiGo has apologized to passengers and acknowledged "a serious operational crisis."

How long until air traffic situation in India is brought under control?

Given the scale of disruptions, the government relaxed some of its rules for the airline until February, but mandatory rest periods for pilots remain in place.

The Delhi airport said in a post on X that flight operations are steadily resuming, but that some IndiGo flights continue to be affected. 

IndiGo has said it could return to normalcy between December 10-15.

Edited by: Roshni Majumdar