UDAN II to link 43 airports: Aviation Minister.

Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapati Raju recently said the UDAN Phase 2 has dealt with difficult issues. Speaking at a press conference to announce the second round of winners under the regional air connectivity scheme, he said: UDAN 2 will connect 43 airports and helipads in our priority sector, the North-East and the hill states.

Minister of State Jayant Sinha said 4-5 cities were seeing explosion in flights under Udan II. These include Hubli and Kopal in Karnataka. UDAN I and II is expected to cost the government over Rs. 800 crore annually.

Civil Aviation Secretary RN Choubey said Kargil will be connected by airport for the first time. New greenfield airport in Kannur will get flights to 8 cities while Allahabad will be connected to 12 cities, he added.

HBL