Bidar airport will start civilian operations in a month, under the ambitious Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik scheme of the Civil Aviation ministry.
The announcement was made by Pradeep Singh Kharola, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, at an industry meet held on Saturday ahead of ‘Wings India-2020’, which is scheduled to be held in Hyderabad from March 12 to 15.
“We have operationalised nearly 40 airports in the last five years and the target in the next five years is to double the number of operational airports and helipads in the country,” he said. He added that catering to growth in future was a challenge as airport infrastructure was getting constrained.
He also said that Bengaluru had the potential of becoming the aviation capital of the country. “We have airports in all directions of the State now. A couple of months ago, the Gulbarga (Kalaburagi) airport was made operational. Aviation has become an engine of economic growth,” he said.
Registration of drones
Speaking about the recent move of the Centre to get drones registered to facilitate their identification, he said it was a step towards framing a regulatory framework for drones. “This enlistment of drones will be converted into licences, and we assure everyone that as far as drones are concerned, our regulatory framework will be congenial to everyone,” he said.
Kapil Mohan, Principal Secretary, Infrastructure Development, said the government was considering setting up a Gulbarga Airport Development Authority. “We launched the Kalaburagi airport with the Airports Authority of India, and the response has been very good. To improve regional connectivity, there will be developments regarding Vijayapura, Shivamogga, Karwar, Hassan or Chikkamagluru airports in the next two years,” he said.
