CVC seeks Aviation Ministry's reply over UDF issue

The Aviation Ministry has allegedly amended rules to benefit Mumbai and Delhi airport operators to the tune of Rs 2,300 crore

The Central Vigilance Commission has sought response from Civil Aviation Ministry on its alleged move to amend rules to benefit Mumbai and Delhi airport operators to the tune of Rs 2,300 crore.

The action came after a BJP Member of Parliament claimed that the Ministry was trying to change rules which decide beneficiaries of User Development Fee (UDF), a levy on air travellers.

In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Lok Sabha member Nishikant Dubey had said private firms GMR and GVK were given the airports of Delhi and Mumbai respectively in 2006 on the basis of the revenue share which these companies had agreed to give to Airports Authority of India (AAI).

The share was 46 per cent for Delhi airport and 39 per cent for Mumbai's airport.

"I have reliably learnt that the Ministry of Civil Aviation is considering a proposal to amend the aircraft rules so that UDF is taken out of the purview of revenue share of 46 per cent and 39 per cent.

"This is only to deprive AAI of its contractual share of Rs 2,300 crore and benefits Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) and Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) by equivalent huge amount," Dubey had said in his letter, a copy of which was also marked to the CVC.

The CVC has forwarded the letter of complaint to the Civil Aviation Ministry for necessary action, official sources said.

The quantum of UDF in the total revenues of Delhi is very large. For the period of 2009-14, the total UDF for Delhi comes to Rs 3,800 crore and for Mumbai Rs 700 crore, the MP had claimed.

He has demanded that the government order a probe by CBI and the CVC to expose the alleged irregularity.

The revenue-sharing through UDF and other charges is a continuous source of earning to AAI to take care of airports in remote areas, Dubey said.

The anti-corruption watchdog is also looking into a complaint of alleged corruption in the Rs 2,058-crore deal between Jet Airways and and Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways on the basis of a complaint sent by Dubey.