New Civil Aviation policy in five months: official

The government is likely to come up with a new Civil Aviation policy in the next five months aimed at boosting investment and infrastructure for the fast-growing sector over the next ten years, a senior official said today.

Also, the Civil Aviation ministry is working on a new economic regulatory mechanism for pricing of air tickets as the industry has been passing through a turbulent phase despite growth in passenger traffic.

"We have started fresh work on the new Civil Aviation policy to meet the challenges of the new decade. It will look into issues of sustainability, viability and human resource of the sector," Civil Aviation Secretary S Nasim Zaidi said while inaugurating a conference "Air Cargo as Engine of Economic Growth" organised by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) here.

The new policy would encourage private sector investments and lay emphasis on setting up an air cargo promotion board, Zaidi said, adding "we have about five months to complete the process".

He also said that the ministry was working on an economic regulatory mechanism for pricing of air tickets as the airlines have been attributing their losses to the pricing of air ticket below their cost price.

"It [pricing of air ticket] is the thrust area. We are also working on an economic mechanism that will look into the issues of legality and others and come up with a report within five months," he said, adding but it will not regulate the airfares or fix the tariff.