With Pakyong, India has 100 airports connected by regular scheduled flights: MoCA

The Ministry of Civil Aviation Tuesday said the country has 100 aerodromes connected by regular scheduled flights after the inauguration of Pakyong airport in Sikkim.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the Pakyong aerodrome, where commercial flight operations are set to start from October 4.

After the inauguration, Modi had said that after Independence the country had only 65 airports till 2014, taking an apparent dig at the Congress. In the last four years, the government has built 35 airports, he had said.

Modi-led BJP government came to power in 2014.

Against this backdrop, the ministry said that with the inauguration of Pakyong airport, the country now has 100 airports connected by regular scheduled flights.

Evidently, not all these airports were benefitting the general public. Out of these, only 67 airports were connected by regular flights of scheduled airlines, it said in a series of tweets.

"In the last four years, the number of airports connected with scheduled flights (and thus benefitting general public) has gone up from 67 to 100 airports," the ministry said.

According to the ministry, the fact was referred to by the Prime Minister in his speech when he said "ye airport ban ne ke baad hamare desh mein 100 airport kaam karne lag gaye hain".

The Prime Minister has referred to the fact that now 100 airports have become available for service to common man, the ministry said.

"After Independence, the country had only 65 airports till 2014. But in the last four years we have built 35 airports. Earlier, the average was one airport every year, now the average is nine airports per year," Modi had said.

India is one of the fastest growing domestic aviation markets in the world.