Context:
The country’s third-largest airport in terms of passenger traffic, the Bengaluru International Airport, has seen a rapid proliferation of travel to domestic destinations since COVID-19.
About UDAN:
- A Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) under the Ministry of Civil Aviation in 2016.
- Features –
- To develop the regional aviation market.
- To provide affordable, economically viable and profitable air travel on regional routes to the common man even in small towns.
- Providing connectivity and financial incentives to un-served and underserved airports of the country
- Airlines have to cap airfares for 50% of the total seats at ₹2,500 per hour of flight.
- Mode of funding – Viability Gap Funding (VGF) and Regional Connectivity Fund (RCF).
Key features of UDAN 5.0:
- No restriction on the distance between the origin and the destination of the flight.
- VGF to be provided will be capped at 600 km (earlier 500 km) stage length for both Priority and Non-Priority areas.
- No predetermined routes would be offered.
- Same route would not be awarded to a single airline more than once
- Exclusivity of operation provided to an airline will be withdrawn if the average quarterly Passenger Load Factor (PLF) is higher than 75% for 4 continuous quarters.
- Airlines would be required to commence operations within 4 months (earlier 6 months) of the award of the route.
- Novation process for routes from one operator to another has been simplified and incentivized.
Novation is the process of substituting an existing contract with a replacement contract, where the contracting parties reach a consensus.
Previous Phases of the Scheme:
- UDAN 1.0:
- 5 airlines companies were awarded 128 flight routes to 70 airports.
- UDAN 2.0:
- Ministry of Civil Aviation announced 73 underserved and unserved airports
- Helipads were connected for first time
- UDAN 3.0:
- Inclusion of Tourism Routes and Seaplanes
- Increased number of routes in the North- East Region
- UDAN 4.0:
- 78 new routes to enhance the connectivity to remote & regional areas of the country
- Connecting Kavaratti, Agatti and Minicoy islands of Lakshadweep
- UDAN 4.1:
- Connecting smaller airports, special helicopter and seaplane routes.
- Proposed new routes under the Sagarmala Seaplane services of Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways
Other types:
- Krishi UDAN: To assist farmers in transporting agricultural products so that improves their value realisation
- Lifeline UDAN: Intends to transport essential medical cargo to remote parts of the country amid the lockdown to support India’s fight against Covid-19.
- International UDAN: To connect India’s smaller cities directly to key foreign destinations in the neighbourhood
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
With reference to Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, consider the following statements:
1. It is the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
2. It, among other things will also impart training in soft skills, entrepreneurship, financial and digital literacy.
3. It aims to align the competencies of the unregulated workforce of the country to the National Skill Qualification Framework.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2018 Prelims]
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, and 3
Answer: (c)
Explanation:
It is the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE). Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
