PM: Want to see those wearing ‘hawai chappal’ in ‘hawai jahaz’
BIG LEAP Modi’s UDAN scheme takes off with DelhiShimla service
SHIMLA: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday launched the Centre-funded UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme to boost air connectivity to small cities and towns.
“I want to see common citizens of the country who wear Hawai chappal (flip flops) in hawai jahaz (airplanes),” Modi said, after inaugurating the first flight under the scheme from Shimla to Delhi at Jubbarhatti, the tabletop airport located 2,196 metres above sea level and 22 km from here.
“UDAN will lay the foundation of a new India. It was my dream to make air connectivity affordable for the common man,” Modi told the gathering at Shimla’s Ridge Maidan.
Air India subsidiary Alliance Air, which will operate the Delhi-Shimla flight, has put the fare at ₹1,920. Under the scheme, the government aims at connecting 45 unserved and under-served airports by capping fares at ₹2,500 per hour.
Emphasising to “fast-track” India’s development, Modi said middle-class families and medium-category towns have the potential to transform the country. He said the new aviation policy will make air travel afforda- ble besides developing tourism in the country.
“I remember the time when I traversed through Himachal as a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker 20 years back. During those times, mostly Maruti vans plied on the road and people sat cramped inside them,” he said, adding now the air fare between Shimla and the national capital will cost lesser than a taxi ride.
“A taxi will take at least nine hours and is available for ₹10 per km. A flight will now cost you ₹6-7 per km on the same route and will also save your time,” he said. Modi said during the past 70 years, only 70 airports were made operational in the country, while the BJP government has connected 30 new airports. “We target to connect 30 airports each year,” he said.
The PM announced the next flight to take off under the scheme would operate on the MumbaiNanded sector. He also advised airline operators to explore a circular air route connecting Nanded, Amritsar and Patna, saying it would attract Sikh tourists from across the world.