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The Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, has released a request for proposal (RFP) to engage a consultancy firm to support its evaluation study of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) Udan.
The evaluation study aims to identify gaps and challenges related to airport operations, management and development. It will also provide research and economic perspectives on Udan.
Udan, or "Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik", is part of the RCS of upgrading under-serviced air routes. It is the government's regional airport development programme launched in 2016 and came into operation the following year.
Its main objectives are to "creation of new regional airports, airline subsidy for regional routes and induction of smaller planes for the regional connectivity," as stated in the RFP. The support is provided through concessions that come from the Centre, state governments, airport operators, and financial support through viability gap funding (VGF). This will make air travel more affordable and contribute to the overall economic development of India.
Udan has already connected 954 routes connecting 156 airports to date. The programme further aims to connect over 100 unserved and underserved airports, heliports, and water aerodromes across India with over 1000 RCS routes by 2024. The government is also targeting to complete 220 destinations through airports, heliports, and water aerodromes by 2026.
The Regional Connectivity Fund (RCF) was developed under this scheme to provide a self-financing mechanism that funds the VGF requirements. This is done through a levy on certain domestic flights.
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The budget allocation towards this scheme increases every year, with Rs 200.1 crore in the 2017-18 budget to Rs 1244 crore in budget 2023-24.
The RFP was released at the beginning of July, outlining the 'Evaluation Study of Regional Connectivity Scheme.' DMEO is looking for technical consultants to conduct an evaluation of the scheme.
"DMEO, NITI Aayog invites proposals for this assignment, from national/international firms/organisations/institutions, which have requisite experience in this field," the document stated.
One of the deliverables of the study is also to produce a set of best practices and lessons learnt as well as success stories that can be replicated or used to support other airports to improve their performance and scale up.
