India as an aviation hub
The two-day Global Aviation Summit held in Mumbai this January shed light on the vision that MoCA has for the country. A few highlights from the speech of Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Civil Aviation and Commerce and Industry...
Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Civil Aviation and Commerce and Industry, GoI, left no stone unturned to convince the world to work with India in aviation. He unveiled India’s ‘Vision 2040’ at the event which aims to grow 187 million air passengers in 2018 to 1.12 billion in 2040. The summit was his brainchild – to bring the world on a common platform on Indian soil. Prabhu said that a summit of this stature is necessary to encourage collective thinking and bring about reforms. The rise of fuel prices has been an issue but can be dealt with through an exchange. He said, “Aviation is a complex activity; it cannot work in solo. And if it is international to get involved. So it makes sense that all the players in this business come together and draw strategies.” He suggested that if the countries agree, India will be happy to host the summit every year or biennially to encourage more intra-national discussions – to talk about challenges and strategies to deal with them. Speaking about the theme – Flying for All – he spoke of targeting the bottom of the pyramid made popular by marketing guru CK Prahalad. He said, “Imagine if everyone at the bottom of the pyramid can afford a product. Railways work in India because it is affordable. So how can we make aircraft cheaper, how can we build airports that are more lower cost?” The ministry also launched a drone policy. “We want to ensure that drone becomes one of the preferred tools – whether it is controlling law and order or disaster management. We want to ensure that drones are manufactured in India and I welcome all of you to be part of this process,” Prabhu added.