Bids for 190 routes received under UDAN scheme: Jayant Sinha

Bids have been received for as many as 190 routes under the regional air connectivity scheme UDAN, where fares would be capped at Rs 2,500 for one-hour flights.

The government's ambitious UDAN (Ude Desh Ke Aam Naagrik) scheme aims at boosting air connectivity to and from unserved and under-served airports and making flying more affordable.

Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha today said the government hopes to have the first flight under UDAN in February as several airports like in Jaisalmer (Rajasthan) and Cooch Behar (West Bengal) are "ready to go".

Terming UDAN as a game changer and a "step change" in Indian aviation, Sinha said AAI has received 43 initial proposals from 11 bidders for 190 routes under the scheme.
 

"We have 75 operational airports currently in the country. Through the bids that we have received for UDAN, it appears that we will now have 43 new airports that will be joining our aviation network. So now 118 airports are going to be operational once UDAN gets implemented next month or so," Sinha said.

The bids for the routes would be finalised by February 3, he said at a press conference after the bidding started for routes under UDAN scheme.

Soon, 118 airports would see regular flights. This includes 75 operational aerodromes and 43 that would be connected under UDAN, he said.

While the deadline for submitting initial proposals ended on January 16, the counter bids for them can be submitted till February 1. After that, the routes would be awarded to bidders who quote the lowest Viability Gap Funding (VGF) requirement against the routes.

Under UDAN, the participating airlines would be extended VGF -- that would be jointly funded by the Centre and the state government concerned.

Towards VGF, the government has started charging Rs 8,500 levy per departure of flights on major routes.

UDAN, which would be in place for 10 years, was launched in October 2016 and seeks to provide connectivity to unserved and under-served regions through revival of existing air strips and airports.