PRAYAGRAJ, July 11 -- While the Prayagraj airport made a record of movement of aircraft and passengers during Mahakumbh-2025, it has lagged far behind in the Airport Customer Satisfaction Survey due to increased crowd, within months of the conclusion of the mega fair. The airport has bagged 37th rank in the latest survey among the airports of the country that operate domestic airports, whereas it was at 17th place just six months ago and was included in the top-10 airports a year ago, say officials aware of the matter. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) releases a nationwide Customer Satisfaction Index twice a year, based on surveys conducted during the periods January-June and July-December. This evaluation includes only airports that operate domestic flights. In the latest survey, 62 airports across the country were assessed. The Prayagraj airport received a score of 3.87, a significant drop from its previous score of 4.82 in the last survey conducted six months ago. During the Mahakumbh-2205, the airport witnessed overcrowding to the extent that passengers struggled to find seating and several videos and photos of the chaos went viral, reportedly impacting the airport's ranking. In contrast, Udaipur, Khajuraho and Bhopal airports secured the top position with a perfect score of 5.0. Gaya ranked second, while Jammu and Vijayawada shared the third spot. Looking at Uttar Pradesh, several airports outperformed Prayagraj in terms of passenger satisfaction: Kanpur ranked 18th, Agra 20th and Ayodhya 36th. Meanwhile, Gorakhpur airport ranked even lower than Prayagraj, followed by Bagdogra and Darbhanga. The survey was based on 33 parameters, including staff efficiency, safety and security, sense of being protected, availability of flight-related information, and shopping amenities. "During the Mahakumbh, we handled between 20,000 and 27,000 passengers per day-much higher than anticipated. This unexpected surge impacted the overall experience of travellers. We are working to ensure that Prayagraj airport is ranked among the top 10 in the next customer satisfaction survey," said Mukesh Chandra Upadhyay, director, Prayagraj Airport....