 "Khandu urges Centre to boost flight connectivity from Donyi Polo Airport")
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Tuesday urged the Centre to increase flight connectivity from Donyi Polo Airport near here to improve connectivity, tourism and commerce in the northeastern state.
In a letter to Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, Khandu pointed out that as of now, one flight each is being operated from Donyi Polo Airport to Kolkata (six times a week) and to New Delhi (four times a week).
These flights, he said, are regularly operating at complete capacity, often leading to immense surges in travel fares and unavailability of tickets for prospective passengers, including in cases of medical and other exigencies.
Also, the absence of daily flight operations hampers ease of access for visitors, tourists, often forcing them to seek other travel options.
He said there is no same-day connectivity while travelling from Itanagar to Bhopal and Kochi, causing passengers to spend an additional night in New Delhi or Kolkata.
The layover while travelling from Itanagar to Ahmedabad is 5 hours 25 minutes and the layover while travelling from Itanagar to Bengaluru is 6 hours, he said.
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The chief minister also lamented the discontinuation of flight services between Itanagar and Guwahati operated by FlyBig under the UDAN scheme since November 2023.
He appealed to the Union minister to increase flight services from Itanagar to New Delhi and Kolkata and reinstate flight services between Itanagar and Guwahati under the RCS-UDAN scheme.
Meanwhile, in another letter to Rahul Bhatia, Group Managing Director of IndiGo, Khandu sought an increase in the number of flights to Delhi, preferably a morning departure flight from Itanagar.
He also requested direct flight connectivity from Itanagar to other major metros such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai and Hyderabad.
Expressing gratitude to IndiGo for operating the first flight from the Donyi Polo Airport and for connecting Itanagar to Kolkata and New Delhi through regular flights, Khandu said that the initiative has been of immense comfort and convenience to the people of Arunachal Pradesh.
He said that the state's civil aviation department has already been instructed to provide all necessary support to IndiGo for enhancing and extending flight services.
IndiGo has announced it will operate flight services between Itanagar and Kolkata seven days a week from July 31. Currently, there is no flight service on the route on Wednesdays.