New Delhi, May 21 (IANS): The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) on Tuesday claimed substantial enhancement in baggage delivery systems at the major airports across the country.

BCAS officials said that following an extensive overhaul and upgrade in equipment, services, and monitoring processes, the latest findings reveal a notable improvement in the speed and efficiency of baggage delivery.

After a two-month evaluation period, data indicates a significant increase in the percentage of baggage complying with globally accepted delivery standards.

In January, only 62.2 per cent of passengers received their baggage on time. However, from March 2024 onwards, this figure has surged to over 90 per cent.

“More importantly, the progress has been sustained since then and the percentage of bags/luggage arriving within 30 minutes reached a high of 92.5 per cent in May 2024,” an official said.

According to the officials, BCAS had undertaken an exercise to enhance the baggage delivery system of the domestic airlines at six major airports -- Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru.

As per the global standards prescribed by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), as well as Schedule 3 of the Operation, Management and Development Agreement (OMDA) with airports, baggage should be delivered to passengers within 30 minutes of the aircraft's arrival.

The exercise started on January 14 this year.

In Phase 2, the government has advised all international airlines, as well as domestic airlines operating in other airports, to ramp up baggage delivery timings following the same efforts.