Air India Will Discontinue ‘Muslim Meal’ Service, But Passengers Can Opt for ‘Special Meal’ Instead
Air India Will Discontinue 'Muslim Meal' Service, But Passengers Can Opt for 'Special Meal' Instead
Pre-booked meals that were previously identified with the MOML (Muslim Meal) sticker will now be called Special Meal (SPML) with the Air India menu.
Air India’s menu features a variety of choices, including Hindu Meals, Jain Meal, Kosher Meal, Vegan Meal, and others. This selection is thoughtfully crafted to accommodate the dietary preferences and religious customs of diverse communities.
The label for the ‘Muslim Meal’ provided on Air India flights has been changed to ‘Special Meal’. Pre-booked meals that were previously identified with the MOML (Muslim Meal) sticker will now be called Special Meal (SPML), indicating that they are Halal-certified options.
Air India was always criticized for serving meals that are religiously named. In fact, there was a proposal to the Aviation Ministry of India to consider a change in the airline menu names.
In June, Congress MP Manickam Tagore expressed his worries regarding the classification of meals by religion rather than by dietary preferences, urging the Ministry of Civil Aviation to intervene with Air India.
Air India, owned by Tata, has mandated that passengers must pre-book their meals. As Vistara integrates into Air India to enhance service efficiency, this new requirement has been implemented for all travelers.
The company informed all stakeholders of its decision via an internal circular issued earlier this month. The circular specifies that pre-booked meals marked with MOML stickers will be classified as special meals, and a halal certificate will accompany these meals. This adjustment is part of AI’s larger initiative to standardize meal services in the wake of its merger with Vistara.
“We have always given meal options to passengers for convenience. Now meal service has been streamlined (due to bigger size and scale of AI) and meals need to be pre-booked.” Earlier the relatively smaller AI (pre-merger with Vistara) was not very insistent on pre-booking meals,” says an Air India official.
