30 airports, airstrips & 1 water aerodrome in Northeast up for bidding under UDAN 4.0

DIMAPUR, DECEMBER 6 (MExN): With focus on connectivity of the North eastern region, UDAN 4.0 scheme under the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has invited bids for 6 underserved and 24 unserved airports/airstrips in the North-East states of India.

 

The ministry has also recognized 1 Water Aerodrome location that is up for bidding in the region, informed a press release from the PIB, Kohima. “The efforts are constantly being undertaken to provide aerial connectivity to the region.The move will not only boost tourism but will also transform economic situation of the region. Under the UDAN 4.0 scheme, MoCA is also providing additional Viability Gap Funding (VGF) of around 25% to the airlines,” it added.

 

The list of unserved Airports / Airstrips up for bidding include Arunachal Pradesh – Alinya, Along, Daparizo, Mechuka, Tuting, Vijaynagar, Walong, Yinghiong, Ziro; Assam –Chabua, Darrang, Dinjan, Ledo, Misa Mari,  Nazira, Sadiya, Sorbhog, Sukerating (Dum Duma) ; Meghalaya –Dwara, Shella, Tura; and Tripura -Kailashahar, Kamalpur, Khowai

 

The list of Underserved Airports / Airstrips up for bidding are Arunachal Pradesh –Passighat & Tezu; Assam – Jorhat, Rupsi, Tezpur; and Meghalaya –Shillong

 

Meanwhile, the list of Water Aerodrome up for bidding is Umrangso Reservoir in Assam.

 

MoCA aims to operationalize 1000 routes and more than 100 airports in the next five years. This would be achieved by focusing on operationalizing routes in Priority Areas. AAI would focus on developing the no-frills airport in the future and routes connecting such airports would be prioritized for the award of VGF. The market would be incentivized to develop short-haul routes only, providing connectivity to nearby airports.