Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia expands aerial connectivity in Northeast

New schedule will be effective from today

NEW DELHI: Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Minister of State, Civil Aviation, (retd) General Dr V.K. Singh along with Rajeev Bansal, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) virtually flagged off six routes expanding the aerial connectivity of North-East India.

The routes commencing operations from Monday are Kolkata-Guwahati, Guwahati-Aizawl, Aizawl-Shillong, Shillong-Aizawl, Aizawl-Guwahati, and Guwahati-Kolkata. Dr. R. Lalthangliana, Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Higher & Technical Education, Commerce & Industry; Robert Romawia Royte, Minister of State for Sports & Youth Services, Tourism and Information & Communication Technology along with other important members of the State government joined the event virtually from the Lengpui Airport, Aizawl in Mizoram.

Joint Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Usha Padhee, along with other senior officials of the MoCA were also present at the ceremony held at MoCA.

Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia said, "Mizoram is the gateway to North East India. The city has an immense amount of importance for its Tourism sector and economy. We are committed to giving wings to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of making it possible that every State's uniqueness must be experienced by all citizens of the country. I assure you, that MoS General (retd) Dr V.K. Singh and I will personally visit Mizoram very soon."

The Union Minister further mentioned, "I am delighted to mention the fact that most of the ATR aircraft of Alliance Air are deployed on the north-eastern routes. Today, we are further establishing seamless connectivity across entire North East India by connecting four cities with one flight. This underlines the due importance given to the North East by the Ministry of Civil Aviation under the leadership of our Prime Minister.

"Under the UDAN scheme, we have connected cities that had no mention on the Aviation map of the country. We have already started 60 airports, and 387 routes, out of which 100 routes are awarded in North East alone, & 50 are already operational. Moreover, In 2014, only 6 airports were operational in North East, now we have grown to 15 airports in a short span of 7 years. Therefore, this further highlights the due importance of the North-Eastern states for this government. In addition to this, under the KRISHI UDAN Yojna, we have identified 16 airports to enhance the export opportunities of the region establishing dual benefits of enhancement of cargo movements and exports."

Today's flight launch has expanded the aerial connectivity of the North East by connecting multiple States hitherto not connected via flights. The flight connectivity on these routes has been a long-pending demand of the natives of the region.

Eastern India tempts tourists with wonderful verdant valleys, hilly streams, lush green forests, vast tea gardens, snow-capped mountain peaks, mighty rivers, tribal culture, its colourful fairs and festivals.

These flights will open a seamless gateway and smooth aerial access option for nature lovers, travellers, and tourists.

Shillong is surrounded by hills from all sides. The city is famous for the presence of many well-reputed educational institutions; it is the hub of education for the entire North East India. Apart from being a beauty and education centre, Shillong also acts as the gateway to Meghalaya, the State famous for heavy rainfall, caves, tallest waterfalls,

beautiful landscapes, and its rich heritage and culture. Aizawl is known as the home of the highlanders & is the seat of a rich tribal cultural extravaganza and is famous for its handicrafts. The town is blessed with exotic natural beauty.

With these new flights, travellers from Guwahati, Aizawl and Shillong will get multiple options for onward connectivity to the rest of the country.

In the constant endeavour to bolster the regional connectivity of the country, the first direct flight on the Tirupati-Delhi route was also started on Sunday. It connects one of the best heritage cities of the country with the capital of the country. (PIB)

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