NEW DELHI, May 20 � In what could mean fulfilment of a long-pending demand, the Civil Aviation Ministry has given its nod to set up its regional hub of operation at the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati. The proposed hub is expected to become operational early next year.
The plan was finalised at a meeting between Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Bijoy Krishna Handique, and Civil Aviation Minister Vyalar Ravi. The meeting assumes significance in the backdrop of the recent incidents involving the civil aviation sector in the North-east. Passenger helicopter service is currently under suspension following back-to-back accidents involving Pawan Hans copters. Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu and 17 passengers were killed at Tawang in two separate accidents last month. The Alliance Air operation in the North-east has also drawn a lot of flak.
Emerging from the meeting, Handique told this newspaper that several important decisions were arrived at in the meeting on Friday morning. The Civil Aviation Minister has assured full cooperation to
improve air services in the region, Handique said. The meeting was also joined by chairman of Airport Authority of India (AAI) VP Agarwal and chairman-cum-managing director of Air India, Arvind Jadhav.
Handique said the major decision pertained to setting up of a regional hub of operation at Guwahati, Agaratala, Imphal and Dibrugarh airports. To begin with, operations would start in Guwahati. The airport currently handles 40 flights daily.�The proposal is to set up three hangars at Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport. Initially two hangars would be constructed at a cost of Rs 3 crore each. The North Eastern Council (NEC) would fund the construction of the hangars, Handique disclosed.
Regional hub operation at Guwahati is expected to start in about 10 months, officials said.
�The regional hub for civil aviation in Guwahati has been a three-decade-old demand of the people of the region and I thank Ravi for addressing this issue. I am hopeful that Guwahati will start functioning as a regional hub very soon,� Handique said. The Minister of Civil Aviation would lay the foundation stone in the presence of Minister of DoNER and Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi. �This will help in night-parking of aircraft at Guwahati and early morning operations to the interiors of the region,� Handique said.
Meanwhile, the meeting also decided to set up composite training school for ground-level staff for navigation and aircraft maintenance at Lilabari. It is envisaged that the training institute would meet the demand of ground handling and maintenance personnel that is going to arise once the proposed airport in the region becomes operational, Handique said. The initial plan was to set up a pilot training institute but subsequently it was modified, he added.
At the meeting, Vyalar Ravi conveyed Civil Aviation Ministry�s decision to increase the frequency of flights to Tezpur and Lilabari to cater to the rush of passengers in the wake of suspension of Pawan Hans services.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has decided to increase the services of Alliance Air to Lilabari and Tezpur due to no-operation of Pawan Hans helicopter services to Arunachal Pradesh. Alliance Air would be increasing services to Lilabari and Tezpur with ATR-42 aircraft, it was announced on Wednesday.�The frequency in Guwahati-Tezpur-Silchar-Jorhat-Lilabari-Kolkata sectors has been increased. The services to Tezpur and Lilabari will increase to six flights per week. The Alliance Air, meanwhile, is adding another ATR aircraft to its fleet of four operating in the North-east. The fifth aircraft would be used in the Tezpur and Lilabari sectors.