Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu has said no airfare cap is planned despite the festive travel rush, but the government would engage with airlines to keep ticket prices reasonable as the demand rises.He said the government was holding regular meetings with airlines, a mechanism it had used during festivals and major events in the past to address sharp movements in ticket prices.Carriers would be advised to keep fares reasonable so that passengers were not burdened by unusually high prices, he stressed.The minister, however, said the pressure on airfares was not necessarily linked to the festive season alone. The ongoing West Asia crisis has pushed up aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, adding to airline operating costs.According to Naidu, ATF accounts for around 40-43 per cent of airfares, which means even a marginal increase in fuel prices can have a direct impact on ticket prices.The government has taken measures this year to insulate airlines from sharp volatility in jet-fuel prices triggered by the West Asia crisis. In June, the Union Cabinet approved a Rs 10,000-crore price stabilisation fund to support public-sector oil marketing companies and help keep ATF prices for scheduled Indian airlines stable for three years.Naidu was speaking on the sidelines of the signing of agreements for the next phase of UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik), the regional connectivity programme aimed at making air travel affordable.The scheme, which recently completed 10 years, has been extended for another decade. The government plans to develop 100 new airports and 200 modern heliports or helipads and facilitate travel for another four crore passengers under the next phase.Nearly Rs 30,000 crore is planned to invested over the next 10 years. With contributions from states and other stakeholders, the economic impact could rise to around Rs 60,000 crore.Twenty-one states and Union Territories have signed MoUs with the Civil Aviation Ministry. West Bengal is scheduled to sign on September 28, while the remaining states are expected to complete the process within the next two to three weeks.Drawing lessons from the first phase, the government has introduced a challenge mode instead of taking up all identified airports simultaneously. Priority projects will be selected and fast-tracked to speed up construction.Once work begins, airport projects will face an 18-month completion target, cutting the earlier average construction period of two to three years.Over the past decade, UDAN has helped operationalise more than 80 airports and extended affordable regional air connectivity to around 1.54 crore passengers. The government also launched the Challenge Mode and released bidding-round documents for the next phase on Tuesday.Naidu said the government wants at least five domestic carriers to eventually operate fleets of 100 aircraft or more each, creating capacity to meet rising passenger demand.