Travel Guides & Articles
Air India Express joins IATA as fourth Indian member airline
Air India Express has joined the International Air Transport Association (IATA) as a member, making it the fourth Indian carrier currently part of the global airline association.
IATA represents around 350 airlines that account for about 80 per cent of the global air traffic.
In a post on LinkedIn on Wednesday, IATA welcomed the membership of Air India Express, which was launched in 2005 and is the low-cost wholly-owned subsidiary of Air India.
“With a fleet of 115 aircraft-75 Boeing 737s and 40 Airbus A320s, the airline operates around 500 daily flights, connecting 38 domestic and 17 international airports across India, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia,” IATA said.
With this addition, India now has four IATA member airlines: Air India and Air India Express (both owned by the Tata Group), IndiGo, and SpiceJet. Jet Airways, which ceased operations in April 2019 and is undergoing liquidation, was previously an IATA member.
Seven wonders within Fatehpur Sikri, India
This monumental Mughal capital 37 kilometres outside Agra was founded in 1571 but lasted scant decades. The magnificently mournful ruins are one of India’s most underrated sights.
1 Make a grand entrance through Victory Gateway
As you lurch out of Agra, dodging cars and camel carts, your first sight of this ruined city is an immense hilltop gateway, one of the world’s biggest, wobbling like a mirage in the heat. Victory Gateway was built in 1602 from red sandstone and white marble to commemorate Emperor Akbar’s military triumphs, although its Persian inscription warns the world doesn’t last. This by itself qualifies as a mighty monument, and the views are splendid.
2 Pause in admiration inside the mosque
Step through the gateway into the courtyard of the Friday Mosque and you get the first impact of this tremendous ensemble. Everything is built of red sandstone, everything outsized, and yet the decorative detail – window frames, balconies, roof brackets – wonderfully carved. The mosque is one of India’s finest and largest and centres on the tomb of a Sufi, inlaid with mother-of-pearl. Local women come to tie strings on the marble lattice in hope of being granted children.
3 Check out the architecture in the Audience Hall
This gloriously startling building in the royal quarter is where Akbar consulted advisers. The Diwan-i-Khas has wall recesses that served as bookshelves for royal documents and texts. However, your eyes will surely be on the enormous and wildly ornate octagonal pillar of the main hall, which rises from the centre of the room like the handle of an umbrella and props up an elevated walkway that resembles the balcony in an opera house.
4 Look up in the Imperial Treasury
Fatehpur Sikri shows wide Hindu, Islamic and Persian influences but this genius building next to the Audience Hall takes inspiration from Jain temple architecture and decorative sculpture. Stone safes are concealed in the walls, but gaze up: the brackets that hold up the ceiling are embellished with mythical elephant-headed sea monsters, said to guard treasures in the depths of the ocean. In the fields behind, don’t miss the odd-looking spiky tower erected in memory of Akbar’s beloved elephant Hiran.
5 Enjoy the faded frescoes in Mariam’s House
The harem complex has several fine pavilions, some showing Turkish influences and others covered with depictions of swans and horses. The carvings and fretwork are so fine in places you could mistake sandstone for wood. If you’re pressed for time, head straight to Mariam’s House, perhaps the best example. As a bonus, it has bright and sometimes surreal gold-tinted frescoes – look out for the diaphanous woman riding a gigantic parrot.
6 Wander through the other imperial quarters
This is the most impressive part of Fatehpur Sikri, erupting in columns, latticed screens and elaborately decorated architectural elements, and graced with ornamental pools and clipped gardens. Persian verses loop across the emperor’s bedroom or House of Dreams, although judging from his innumerable concubines Akbar spent scant time on sleep. The pool below the elevated kiosk cooled the bedchamber. This is just one of numerous buildings that might take an hour or two to admire.
7 Close your guidebook and get lost
Fatehpur Sikri was planned in the smallest detail: servants’ quarters, lavatory blocks, fountain drainage, masonry rings to hold silk canopies for courtyard shading. Take time to inspect the detail and soak up the melancholy magnificence away from the main visitor axis. Birds wheel overhead and squirrels sun themselves on walls. In the late afternoon the sandstone turns crimson, then orange and subtle pink before the light fades on this abandoned city of lost dreams.
The writer travelled as a guest of Incredible India incredibleindia.gov.in and Malaysia Airlines malaysiaairlines.com
Sign up for the Traveller Deals newsletter
Get exclusive travel deals delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up now.
Traveller Guides
From our partners
Travel Guides & Articles
Heavy rain alert in Delhi–Gurugram: IMD issues an orange alert; travel and safety advisory |
In a recent update, Delhi and its surrounding NCR cities, including Gurugram, Noida, and Faridabad, have received intense rainfall. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Delhi while a warning of very heavy rainfall and thunderstorms has been issued for Gurugram.Keeping the current situation in view, the District Disaster Management Authority has issued a travel advisory for Gurugram for 2nd September 2025. It reads:On September 1, 2025, Gurugram recorded over 100 mm of rainfall between 3 PM and 7 PM. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an Orange Alert, forecasting heavy to very heavy rainfall on September 2, 2025.In light of this warning:Corporate offices and private institutions in Gurugram district are advised to ask employees to work from home.
All schools in the district are directed to conduct online classes on September 2, 2025.On the other hand, Delhi too is experiencing non-stop rains which have caused waterlogging and long traffic across roads. Authorities are closely monitoring the Yamuna River too, which is expected to rise close to the danger mark of 206 metres on Tuesday. Low-lying areas are particularly vulnerable to flooding.India Meteorological Department forecastIn the present scenario, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Delhi for heavy rainfall. Similar alerts have been issued for NCR regions including Noida, Faridabad, and Gurugram. A yellow warning has been issued for Ghaziabad.Not only this, IMD has cautioned that northern India may experience heavy rainfall at least until September 5 especially for Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab which are under red and orange alerts.Travel disrupted, airlines issue advisoryAirlines such as IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet, and Akasa too have issued warnings and advised people of possible delays and cancellations due to poor visibility. Passengers are advised to check flight status before leaving the house.Advisory
It is advised to avoid flood-prone zones, underpasses, and Yamuna ghats.Use public transport.For those in Gurugram, work from home is strongly recommended on September 2 as safety of people is more important.Keep a check on official IMD and local weather updates before planning anything.
Northeast India, with its lush forests, rugged mountains, and pristine rivers, is a biodiversity hotspot offering unparalleled opportunities to encounter some of the world’s rarest wildlife. The region’s national parks and sanctuaries protect unique ecosystems and endangered species like the one-horned rhinoceros, red panda, clouded leopard and more. From Manas National Park and Tiger Reserve in Assam to Keibul Lamjao National Park in Manipur, find out what makes these national parks so unique, and what rare creatures these parks have in store for visitors.
-
Business3 days agoThe Guardian view on Trump and the Fed: independence is no substitute for accountability | Editorial
-
Tools & Platforms3 weeks ago
Building Trust in Military AI Starts with Opening the Black Box – War on the Rocks
-
Ethics & Policy1 month agoSDAIA Supports Saudi Arabia’s Leadership in Shaping Global AI Ethics, Policy, and Research – وكالة الأنباء السعودية
-
Events & Conferences3 months agoJourney to 1000 models: Scaling Instagram’s recommendation system
-
Jobs & Careers2 months agoMumbai-based Perplexity Alternative Has 60k+ Users Without Funding
-
Funding & Business2 months agoKayak and Expedia race to build AI travel agents that turn social posts into itineraries
-
Education2 months agoVEX Robotics launches AI-powered classroom robotics system
-
Podcasts & Talks2 months agoHappy 4th of July! 🎆 Made with Veo 3 in Gemini
-
Podcasts & Talks2 months agoOpenAI 🤝 @teamganassi
-
Mergers & Acquisitions2 months agoDonald Trump suggests US government review subsidies to Elon Musk’s companies