Mumbai, India (CU)_ The UDAN regional connectivity project aims to establish around 220 destinations, including airports, heliports, and water aerodromes, together with 1,000 new routes, in a major attempt to increase the number of flight options between cities in India. Regional Connectivity Scheme UDAN, the flagship initiative of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, has accomplished five years of success since Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched its inaugural flight on April 27, 2017.
The initiative was launched on October 21, 2016, with the intention of meeting the desires of the common people by following the vision of “Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik” and implementing improved aviation infrastructure and air connectivity in tier II and tier III cities. UDAN has considerably enhanced regional aviation connectivity in the country over the past five years. In 2014, there were 74 airports operating in the country. This number has climbed to 141 as a result of the UDAN initiative.
According to Jyotiraditya Scindia, the Minister of Civil Aviation, “The success of RCS UDAN is a demonstration of the government’s commitment to the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik.’ It has played a great role in the transformation of the Indian aviation industry. So far under this scheme, we have 425 routes aiming to go up to 1,000 routes, 68 new airports aiming to touch 100 airports”. He added, “In the next 4 years, we are expecting 40 crore travelers through Civil Aviation in India. That day is not far when along with rail transport and road transport Civil Aviation will become the bulwark of the transportation in India.”
Under the UDAN initiative, a minimum of 68 underserved/unserved locations, including 58 airports, 8 heliports, and 2 water aerodromes, have been connected. With 425 new routes started as part of the plan, UDAN has extended air networking to over 29 states and union territories throughout the nation. As of August 4, over 10 million travelers have benefited from this service.
