Parliament session: Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday said that nine more airports would be constructed in Uttar Pradesh over the next two years.
During the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Scindia responded to supplementaries by stating that the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is giving a huge importance to the civil aviation sector.
75 airports developed in 9 years of Modi govt
The Union Minister said that in the initial 65 years of independence, only 74 airports were built. However, in the last nine years under the Modi government, 75 airports, including airports, heliports, and waterdromes, have been developed, bringing the total to 149.
Scindia highlighted that in the first 65 years, only three greenfield airports were built. In contrast, the current government has developed 12 greenfield airports since 2014.
Nine more airports to be constructed in UP
He said that only six airports were developed in Uttar Pradesh over the first 65 years. However, in the last nine years, three additional airports have been constructed in the state. "We will construct nine more airports in the next two years in Uttar Pradesh," said Scindia, adding that the total number would reach 18.
In response to a question about the Meerut airport, the minister stated that operations with ATR aircraft, using VFR (Visual Flight Rating), can commence once the state government provides an additional 115 acres of land. "Meerut is an unlicensed airport and was identified during the third round of bidding under the UDAN scheme for the development and to operate RCS flights," Scindia said in a written reply.
Under UDAN 4.2 round of bidding, the Meerut-Lucknow-Meerut route has been awarded to FlyBig for the operation of RCS flights with 19-seater type of aircraft and frequency of 133 seats per week and not for ATR 72. "Only after the airport is ready and licensed, the Selected Airlines Operator can start operating RCS flights from the Meerut airport," he added.
(With PTI inputs)
