It was a last hour rush to check in; only two passengers were ahead of me in the queue. The person next to the counter look bit frustrated and seemed to be a labor. He is thin and look very frustrated .But his eyes were still bright with a spark of hope. He is stuck because of the excess baggage where he was asked to pay nearly 40 BD at the counter to get the luggage in.

The person just ahead of me, appeared to be a businessman in his safari suite, Fat and tall started losing his patience. Finally his uncontrollable impatience urged him to surpass the first one. Any way he checked in with, I would guess, about 40 kilograms of suitcases and boxes in no time. 

Curiosity in me decided not to overtake the only left out passenger. He couldn’t think of abandoning new blankets and Nido Milk powder he packed for his family and at the same time and was unable to afford the excess baggage charges. The airline staff explained him that even a safety pin to tissue paper can burn more fuel for an aircraft.

To my surprise, the weight of the passenger who collected his boarding pass must be at least 40 kilos more than the one in the waiting list but the first passenger, whose baggage is under the limit, pays nothing. I am sure that the bewildered labor with his luggage may weigh maximum up to 100 kg with his extra baggage! Yet, in terms of the airplane’s fuel consumption, it is all the same whether the extra weight is baggage or body fat.

I think it is high time that the Airlines should set a standard weight for passengers and luggage, and then ask people to get on the scales with their luggage. Again the rich and wealthier people are more obese so they can afford such an extra pay .At the same time the poor workers may not be obese and can carry more baggage to the destination without an extra cost! Usually airlines fix their tariff based on the total weight they carry .In this case the poor worker already paid for the fat passenger and on top levied for no reason. Being a socialist, I think this is more justifiable!!

The growing waistlines of passengers are eating into the profit of the airline industry .A study by the US centers for disease control calculated that 275million US dollars have to be spent each year on 343 million more gallons of fuel needed to carry the extra 5kgs.This increase adds an extra 3.8 million tons of carbon dioxide to annual green house gas emissions!

However the situation seemed to settle down when the poor man managed to borrow some money from his friends .The smile of peace swayed on his face .While moving to board he told me that he skimped and saved for ten years for this much awaited flight to join his family, and may not come back .He was in his sixty’s .He worked almost twenty five years as a carpenter in a construction company .Later when they closed the company he was absconding for four years .While waiting for the luggage at the Calicut airport ,I asked him casually whether someone will come to pick him ,he answered with a smile ,I am like an excess baggage ,my relatives may or may not be there .I still don’t know whether I am worth to be received or not .