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With air traffic from India projected to go up "substantially", the
government would soon hold talks with
France,
Germany,
Hong Kong and
China to enhance the
bilateral air traffic rights in line with what has been agreed upon with the
USA and the UK.
"Along with the limited 'open sky' policy, we will be liberalising our
bilaterals like we have done with the US and the UK. We will be holding
talks with France, Germany, Hong Kong and mainland China in this regard
soon," Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said at an international
conference on building of airports here.
Such arangements would also be worked out with ASEAN nations, with whom
agreements to open up the skies have already been signed, he said.
In the past few months, India has signed liberal bilaterals with US and
UK. While there is an unlimited open sky agreement with the former, the
bilaterals have been doubled to 40 flights a week with the latter, with
India allowing private cariers, Jet Airways and Air Sahara, to operate to
London and Gatwick.
Speaking on the development of aviation infrastucture in the country, the
Minister said development of airports had not been paid attention to in the
last five decades.
Pointing out that India had a large middle-class population, which could
be a major market for the aviation industry, he said if only 30 per cent of
the Indians decided to travel by air, it would be more than the entire
populations of the US and Western Europe.
"There is no choice but to build up aviation infrastructure in the
country and that too very soon," the Minister said, adding that the full
potential of the industry could be realised only if the growth in aviation
infrastructure was commensurate with that of air travel.
The government had plans to develop 30 non-metro airports in the shortest
possible time; the AAI would develop these airports in partnership with the
private sector, Patel said.
"People ask me where will the money come from. Even for these 30 airports
which are functional, we will invite public- private partnership for the
city or the aero side," he said, adding a "new direction" and emphasis was
being given on this aspect as well.
In addition, there are about 80-odd airports, which are non-operational,
and efforts were being made to make them functional, he said.
Besides the modernisation of Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore
airports, those at Kolkata and Chennai would also be developed "definitely
in the same way as Mumbai and Delhi", Patel said.
"Combination of private and public participation is the real challenge
for all concerned to work in sync," he added. |
