Only half of UDAN routes operational, Covid-19 to hit scheme further: ICRA

The scheme is funded through a Rs 50 levy on flight tickets on major routes

Only 47 per cent of the awarded routes have been operationalised under the government's regional air connectivity scheme and the second wave of Covid-19 pandemic will impact the scheme further, rating agency ICRA said in its report on Tuesday.

The civil aviation ministry launched the UDAN ( Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) scheme in 2016 to connect unserved and underserved airports. The first flight under the scheme took off in April 2017.

The number of new RCS routes which started operations increased at a healthy pace and stood at 102 and 120 routes in FY19 and FY20, respectively, but have