An Elderly Woman Falls after Being Denied a Wheelchair at Delhi IGI Airport

An elderly woman at IGI Airport was denied a wheelchair and her continuous walking led her to fall in the airport. She was admitted to the ICU as she suffered serious injuries. Parul Kunwar, granddaughter of the elderly lady took X to post about the issues. She complained that the wheelchair was prebooked and the airline failed to address the problem. The lady is the widow of Lieutenant General.

Parul also complained that because of the failure, her grandmother had to walk some distance inside the airport for which she collapsed near the counter. Kanwar further claimed that no first aid was provided even though she suffered severe injuries to the face and nose. They had boarded the flight in the same condition.

After reaching their destination, the elderly woman was admitted to an intensive care unit. After seeing the post, the airline wished for a speedy recovery. "I post this because I have no choice and because it infuriates me that there is such little value for human life and wellbeing. @airindia , you treated my grandmother so poorly, and with such little regard. You should be ashamed," claimed her post on X.

The woman was traveling from Delhi to Bangalore and she had to cross three parking in Delhi terminals for which she collapsed. Her post said "For our travel back from Delhi to Bangalore on 4th March 2025, we booked a wheelchair for my 82-year-old grandmother (widow of a decorated Lt General, who has fought for India in several wars) well in advance - confirmed by the airline. Upon reaching the airport, she was not allocated one. We tried for almost an hour, requesting airline staff, airport help desk, and alternate airline staff from @indigo (who incidentally had a free wheelchair but won’t share). With no other option, this old lady slowly made her way across 3 parking lanes at T3 New Delhi, on foot with assistance from a family member. She managed to enter the airport on foot, still no wheelchair or assistance was provided. Ultimately, her legs gave way, and she fell - she fell in front of the Air India premium economy counter,"

While adding the fact that no one came ahead for the elderly women’s help, she wrote " Not one person stepped in to help. We requested someone to help get first aid - no help. The expectation from Air India staff was for the family member to go to the MI room and get medical aid. Finally, the wheelchair arrived, and she was promptly boarded without a proper checkup with a bleeding lip and injury to her head and nose. On flight crew did help with ice packs and called ahead to Bangalore airport for medical aid, where she was seen by a doctor and given 2 stitches.,"

A complaint has also been lodged with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. While updating on the event she posted "We have lodged complaints at DGCA, and with Air India and await action. Attaching pictures of my grandmother, at her grandson's wedding on 3rd March, followed by her condition on the 4th and 5th of March. Please share for broader reach,"