UDAN SCHEME

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Context - UDAN Scheme has been selected for the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration.

Details

• The UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme has been selected for the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration 2020 under the category “Innovation (General) – Central”.
• The Government of India has initiated this award to acknowledge, recognize and reward extraordinary and innovative work done by Districts and Organizations of State/Government.
  • The award consists of a trophy, scroll and an incentive of Rs 10 lakhs.

About UDAN Scheme

• Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik or UDAN is a regional airport development programme of the Union Government and also a part of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS).
• The main objective is to upgrade under-serviced air routes and to promote air transport infrastructure development in all regions and states of India.
• Its goal is to make air travel affordable, boost economic development, and promote job growth.

Key features of the UDAN Scheme

• The UDAN Scheme is a key element of the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) which was released by the Ministry of Civil Aviation (India) in 2016.
• It is jointly funded by the Union government and state governments.
• Develop new airports and enhance the existing regional airports to increase the number of operational airports with regularly scheduled flights.
• The UDAN scheme will run for 10 years and can be extended thereafter.
• Concessions from the Union Government;
  • Created a Viability Gap Funding (VGF) to subsidise the airfare.
  • Concession on service tax on tickets.
• Concessions from State Governments;
  • Reduction of GST for 10 years.
  • Coordinate with oil companies to create fuelling infrastructure on airports.
  • Provide free land for the development of the airport, with multimodal (rail, road, metro, waterways, etc.) hinterland connectivity.
  • Provide free security Systems and manpower.
  • Provision of water, electricity and other utilities at a reduced rate.
  • 20% share of Viability Gap Funding; North-Eastern states, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Union territories to provide 10% share only.
• Concessions from airport operators;
  • No landing, parking or other charges.
  • No Terminal Navigation Landing Charges.
• There is a cap of maximum fare of Rs 2,500 per hour of flight for 50% of the seats, connecting un-served and underserved regional airports, the remaining 50% of seats will be priced at market rate.
• For helicopter services, the maximum fare is also capped at Rs 2,500 for every 30-minute leg of the flight.

About International Air Connectivity Scheme (IACS)

• The Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched the International Air Connectivity Scheme (IACS) under the “International Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN)” initiative.
• The main objective of the scheme is to improve air connectivity between the certain Indian States with designated international destinations to promote the socio-economic growth of the Indian state.
• The scheme is also supported by the State Governments.
  • The State Government of Assam, Manipur and Tripura have specified routes connecting Guwahati, Imphal and Agartala with selected international destinations viz. Bangkok, Dhaka, Kathmandu, Yangon, Hanoi, Mandalay, Kunming and Chittagong.
• Development and up-gradation of airports to international standards are undertaken by concerned airport operators.

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1817267