The Airport Authority of India (AAI) is mooting a plan to construct two new airports at Raigarh and Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh.
“The officials have been asked to take immediate action on the plan and work out the proposal for building airports in Raigarh and Bilaspur,” minister for civil aviation Ajit Singh said here on Wednesday. The two centres at present have airtrips—one managed by a corporate house and other by the state government.
The minister hinted that the Chhattisgarh was top in the list of states identified for the expansion of aviation services. “I have also directed the ministry officials to take necessary steps for increasing the number of flights connecting the state,” Singh said.
Praising Chhattisgarh government’s effort to curtail the Value Added Tax (VAT) on aviation fuel to four per cent, the civil aviation minister said it had helped in the growth of aviation sector in the state. He said this had not only helped in strengthening state’s economy but also enhance the passenger traffic.
The minister said he had requested all the states charging 20 to 30 per cent VAT on aviation fuel to cut show the tax.
“I thank the Chhattisgarh government for curtailing the VAT that had helped to register about 58 per cent in traffic,” Singh said.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh urged the civil aviation minister to approve the roadmap designed for the expansion of aviation sector in the state. “The state government has provided 430 acres of land to the AAI for expansion,” he said, adding that the low-cost airliners should be propelled to operate from the state.