(a) whether the Government has proposed to build new building at Leh Airport in Union Territory of Ladakh and if so, the details thereof;
(b) whether the Government has allocated fund of Rupees 1000 crore for development and expansion of three airports in Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and if so, the details thereof; and
(c) the other steps being taken by the Government to improve the air connectivity in the Country?
The Minister of State (IC) in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION
(Shri Hardeep Singh Puri)
(a): Airports Authority of India (AAI) has undertaken construction of new domestic terminal building and associated works at Leh Airport in Union Territory of Ladakh at an approved cost of Rs. 480.33 crore.;
(b): AAI owns and manages two Civil Enclaves namely Jammu and Srinagar in Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. AAI has initiated work for expansion and strengthening of runway at Jammu Airport at an approved cost of Rs. 77.00 crore.;
(c): With a view to promote the growth of Indian Aviation sector in a significant manner, the Government released the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) 2016 on 15.06.2016. The aim of the Government is to provide an ecosystem for the harmonised growth of various aviation subsectors. In compliance of NCAP-2016, broad steps taken so far for improving the air-connectivity in the country include:
i) Introduction of Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) - UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) with an aim to facilitate/stimulate Regional air connectivity by making it affordable.
ii) Revival of un-served or under-served routes under RCS - UDAN.
iii) Rationalization of Category-I routes under Route Dispersal Guidelines (RDGs) on the basis of criteria given in NCAP 2016. Further, to promote air-connectivity in hilly states, there is a Special Category in RDG and Jammu & Kashmir region is part of this Category.
iv) The requirement for 5/20 is modified and all airlines can commence international operations provided that they deploy 20 aircraft or 20% of total capacity (in terms of average number of seats on all departure put together) whichever is higher for domestic operations.;