Flights start from Itanagar airport; Scindia says boosting NE connectivity

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday flagged off IndiGo's flight from Itanagar to Mumbai via Kolkata and said efforts are on to enhance air connectivity in the North East.

This is the first flight from Donyi Polo Airport at Hollongi, Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh.

Scindia virtually flagged off the flight from New Delhi. The flight operated from Itanagar to Mumbai via Kolkata.

Itanagar is the 75th domestic and 101st overall destination in the IndiGo network.

In a statement, IndiGo said the second frequency between Kolkata and Itanagar will commence on December 3.

Among others, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju attended the event virtually.

"We are pleased to commence operations from Itanagar which will be our 10th destination in the northeast... over the last few years IndiGo has focused on increasing accessibility in the northeast and now connects seven out of eight states in the region," IndiGo's Chief Strategy and Revenue Officer Sanjay Kumar said.

Meanwhile, Scindia said air connectivity in the North East (NE) has been enhanced and more flights will be operated connecting the region with other places.

Now, there are 16 airports in the North East compared to 9 in 2013-14, he added.

The minister also said the efforts are on to make the Northeastern states the growth engine.

Flights from Imphal to Mandalay and from Agartala to Chittagong will be started soon as part of enhancing international air connectivity in the region, he said.

Imphal is in Manipur and Mandalay is in Myanmar while Agartala is in Tripura and Chittagong is in Bangladesh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the airport on November 19. It is the fourth operational airport in the state.

'Donyi' means the sun and 'Polo' means the moon.

The airport, also the first greenfield airport in Arunachal Pradesh, has been developed in an area of over 690 acres at a cost of more than Rs 640 crore.

The airport is suitable for all weather day operations, and the runway is 2,300 metres long.