AmritsarNanded flight flagged off
TWOHOUR JOURNEY Sikh community welcomes the move as journey to Nanded by train takes 48 hours
AMRITSAR: Air India on Saturday flagged off direct flight between Amritsar and Nanded from Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport in Amritsar. The flight was a long-pending demand of Sikh pilgrims from Punjab wanting to visit Nanded. ››
AMRITSAR: Air India on Saturday flagged off the direct flight between Amritsar and Nanded from Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport in Amritsar. The flight was flagged off by Punjab BJP chief and Union minister of state Vijay Sampla.
The flight was a long-pending demand of Sikh pilgrims from Punjab wanting to visit Nanded, Maharashtra. From Punjab, most pilgrims go for the pilgrimage to Nanded by train, which takes around 48 hours. The launching of the direct flight has been welcomed by the Sikh masses as the journey will now take only two hours .
Meanwhile, Union food processing industry minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Saturday thanked minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha for direct flight between Amritsar and Nanded to facilitate pilgrims to pay obeisance at Hazur Sahib.
NANDED’S IMPORTANCE
The 10 th Sikh guru Guru Go bind Singh had made Nanded his permanent abode and passed his teachings before his death in 1708. Sikh temporal seat Takht Sri Hazur Sahib is situated here, where thousands of pilgrims from across the world come to pay obeisance.
CREDIT WAR
The flight, welcomed by Sikh pilgrims, was inaugurated in the midst of a credit-taking war between Congress Lok Sabha MP from Amritsar Gurjit Singh Aujla and BJP Rajya Sabha MP Shwait Malik. Claiming that he made efforts to ensure this flight starts, Aujla broke the news about Air India starting the flight and also released its schedule. Refuting this claim, Malik stated that the department of civil aviation came under the jurisdiction of Centre, which is led by BJP, and being a member of BJP he had conducted several meetings with the minister and authorities concerned.
On first day of the flight, both the MPs reached the airport. First, Aujla, along with Congress M LA OP Soni, reached. Few minutes later, Malik, a long with Punjab BJP president Vijay Sampla, former BJP minister Anil Joshi, senior BJP leader Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina and SAD urban president Gurpartap Singh Tikka, reached.
Leaders of both parties met inside the airport during a brief cake-cutting ceremony. Former Akal Takht jathedar Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti did ‘ardas’ (prayer) on the occasion. “It is the only Union government and its departments that can start or stop flights,” Malik said.
“I have been conducting meetings with minister concerned for the past a year. Aujla has claimed that he has met director general of civil aviation (DGCA). He doesn’t know DGCA’s only duty is to look after the affairs of airport,” he added. “It was Congress-led United Progress Alliance (UPA) that sabotaged the Amritsar airport by stopping important flights from here. In view of this, Aujla should apologise.”, he said.
Sam pl at hanked Prime Minister Narendra Mo di for facilitating the pilgrims from Punjab.
Aujla was among the 262 passengers who went to Nanded through flight. The flight left at 10.55 am.