U'khand for better air connectivity, lower fares

After the expansion of Jollygrant airport here with night landing facilities, the Uttarakhand government is holding talks with Kingfisher and other airlines to start Airbus/Boeing services in the hill state, hoping the move may bring down airfares.

With a special focus on the ‘mahakumbh’ at Haridwar, the government is trying hard to rope in various airlines. But so far, airlines have shown no interest in starting Airbus/Boeing services in the hill state.

Nevertheless, top officials are in touch with Kingfisher to start the Airbus service on new routes like Dehra Dun-Lucknow-Bangalore and Dehra Dun-Delhi-Mumbai.

“In the coming days, we are expecting regular Airbus services on much cheaper rates,” said Uttarkhand Infrastructure Development Commissioner Ajay Kumar Joshi. He asserted that with operation of Airbus services, fares on the Delhi-Dehra Dun route may also become cheaper by 50 per cent from the current Rs 6,500.

With the Chardham yatra season set to begin in May and the ‘mahakumbh’ fair already in progress at Haridwar, the government is trying hard to strengthen air-services in the state. The officials are also trying to contact Air India Express, which had applied for a licence from the Director General Civil Aviation (DGCA) to operate a regular service from Dehra Dun.

After shelving its operation few years ago, Air Deccan has also shown no interest to restart air-service to Uttarakhand.

Sources said there was a good scope for expansion of air-services from Jollygrant, especially during the summer season when the pilgrimage to Kedarnath, Badrinath, Yamunotri and Gangotri shrines, collectively called Chardham yatra, begins. Nearly 1 to 1.5 million pilgrims visit the Chardham pilgrim centres every year.

Similarly from Jollygrant, a move is afoot to start helicopter services to some of the pilgrim centres, especially Badrinath and Kedarnath.

Officials said the Centre had also promised to start a cargo service for Dehra Dun airport, which is one of the 35 metro-airports in the country.

Meanwhile, the government is also trying to start a new four-lane road connecting the airport with Dehra Dun city. A forest clearance in this regard is still awaited.

The Jollygrant airport at Dehra Dun has been upgraded by Airports Authority of India (AAI) for operation of Boeing-737/Airbus-320 class of aircraft considering traffic potential and requirement projection in the state.