Pests are known to destroy 40 per cent of crops globally, causing a massive loss of $220 billion for the world’s economy. But beyond farmlands, there’s no respite for consumers in cities as well, since incidents of insects even in packaged food often trigger outrage. Now India’s domestic airlines are bugged by cockroaches in meals, and Vistara is the latest carrier facing the embarrassment.
Jet Airways exec spots a conspiracy
After a passenger tweeted images of a dead cockroach in upma served by the Tata-owned airline, Jet Airways CEO Sanjiv Kapoor came to its rescue by questioning the authenticity of the image on social media. His response came after Vistara had already addressed the issue by responding to the passenger’s tweet and assured him about its quality standards. Sanjiv Kapoor had served as Vistara’s Chief Strategy and Commercial Officer, before taking over as the chief executive at the debt-infested Jet Airways.
According to Kapoor, the passenger’s claims were doubtful since the image was shared a month after the incident supposedly took place on a Mumbai-Bangkok flight.
He also smelled foul play since the account only has three followers and no post except for the images aimed at Vistara, and went on to call it a “hit-job” against the airline.
Bugged by controversy
Indian aviation appears to be infested by cockroaches, as Grammy-winning composer Ricky Kej was horrified after spotting the insect near a window on an IndiGo flight. Kej was flying from Patna to New Delhi, and tagged the Ministry of Civil Aviation while tweeting a video of the incident. IndiGo’s response was that insects simply find a way inside despite fumigation and advised Kej to reach out to cabin crew.
In other aviation related news, SpiceJet’s crew reportedly told passengers to pray to god after smoke filled its cabin, although it made an emergency landing later.
