'Air passenger demand up by 56.9 pc in 2016-17 over 2013-14'

Air passenger demand in the country grew by a whopping 56.9 per cent in 2016-17 compared to 2013-14, junior civil aviation minister Jayant Sinha informed Parliament today.
The domestic demand rose 68.2 per cent, while international traffic surged 27.2 per cent in the fiscal year ending March 2017 compared to 2013-14, Sinha said in written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.
"The air passenger traffic in India has witnessed a growth of 56.9 per cent (international 27.2 per cent, domestic 68.2 per cent) during the year 2016-17 as compared to 2013- 14," the minister said.
The state-controlled Airports Authority of India (AAI) manages 125 airports, including 11 international aerodromes, and provides air traffic management (ATM) services.

To another question, Sinha said that the AAI has planned to invest Rs 20,178 crore between 2016-17 and 2021-22 -- Rs 16,961.48 crore for engineering/IT works and Rs 3,216.52 crore for air navigation services (ANS) equipment.