Time ripe for development of Indian aviation sector: Scindia
Media Coverage | 13-01-2024
Union civil aviation minister inaugurates AAR-Indamer MRO in Mihan
Nagpur
With the rise in air passenger traffic by about 130 per cent, time is ripe in India for the development of aviation ecosystem, said Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday while speaking during the inauguration of AAR-Indamer MRO depot at Mihan-SEZ in the city on Friday.
The inauguration was organised to mark the 100th C check-up at Indamer Depot.
Those present on the occasion included Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari, former Union civil aviation minister Praful Patel, director of Indamer Aviation Pvt Ltd Prajay Patel, CEO of IndiGo Pieter Elbers, chairman of Editorial Board of Lokmat Media Group and former member of Rajya Sabha Dr Vijay Darda, head of customer services of South Asia Airbus Laurie Alder, managing director of Indigo Rahul Bhatia, group vice president (aircraft services) AAR Corp Dany Kleiman, former MP Ajay Sancheti, former MP Vikas Mahatme, former Maharashtra minister Anil Deshmukh, vice chairman and managing director of MADC Swati Pandey, AIESL general manager Sanjay Dwivedi and others.
At present, India is the fifth largest nation in domestic and international aviation market. By 2030, the country is poised to move up the ladder and occupy the third position in aviation market, Scindia said.
Similarly, the number of air travellers will reach from the present 155 million to 300 million by 2030, he said adding the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi constructed 75 new airports in the country in the last 10 years as compared to only 75 airports in 65 years preceding Modi government.
Coupled with this, the record number of orders placed by Indian companies for purchase of Airbus to narrow bodied aircraft has proved that India has a capacity to make turnaround in the aviation sector at the global level.
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Need to make Nagpur international airport in true sense, says Dr Darda
Chairman of Editorial Board of Lokmat Media Group and former member of Rajya Sabha Dr Vijay Darda has said that with a view to relieving passenger pressure on Mumbai airport and considering congestion at Pune, if Nagpur is made an international airport in the true sense, the entire region would benefit.
Dr Darda was speaking during the inauguration of AAR-Indamer MRO depot at Mihan-SEZ on Friday. Dr Darda said that as per earlier plans, it was decided to set up a cargo hub at Nagpur. However, the work too has come to a standstill and hence there is a need to speed up the process.
Praful Patel, during his tenure as civil aviation minister, privatised airports and developed many other airports. These included about 68 airports including those in Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru. But, unfortunately, Nagpur could not be developed.
“In fact, I and Nitin Gadkari had discussed over development of Nagpur airport with Praful Patel. We had proposed to transfer Nagpur airport to the Maharashtra government with 51 percent stake with Maharashtra government and 49 percent with the Airport Authority of India (AAI). The proposal was agreed upon. However, later on, the tender process was delayed,” Dr Vijay Darda informed.
Nagpur airport can become a profitable airport. A large number of passengers are travelling from Nagpur and there are all the necessary infrastructure facilities related to the aviation sector. But the matter of privatisation is pending in the apex court, Dr Darda said and proposed that the air traffic control of the country should be managed from Nagpur.
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AAR-Indamer will contribute to devp: Patel
Former Union civil aviation minister Praful Patel said that since he hailed from Vidarbha, it was his responsibility to provide employment in this area. The AAR-Indamer has made a small contribution to the development in the form of MRO. Nagpur is set to become an epicentre of economic activity in future because under the offset clause, Air India MRO depot at a cost of $100 million has come to Nagpur. Similarly, Boeing has also set up a floor beam manufacturing facility in Nagpur. This apart, Raffale-Dassault facility is also doing well at Mihan-SEZ, Patel further said.
Director of Indamer Aviation Pvt Ltd Prajay Patel said that the 100th C check-up of aircraft at AAR-Indamer MROs was done in a time-bound manner with an assurance of quality service. Efforts are also being made to establish new dimensions of maintenance in the field of helicopters. This will help develop aviation ecosystem in Nagpur, he remarked.
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Huge potential for MRO depots: Gadkari
Nagpur is a city of Zero Mile. So, we are trying to make Nagpur famous as the most developed city not only in the country but also in the world. Nagpur, in particular, has now started moving towards becoming an aviation hub, said Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari adding Nagpur being a good business centre there is a huge potential for setting up MRO depots in the city. Gadkari said the growth rate of the sector is 22 per cent and Indian aviation industry ranks third in the world. Hence, MRO is very important in aviation industry. For that, there is a need to acquire new technology, Gadkari further said and laid stress on innovation with a view to future development. Against this background, bisociation fuel should be given a due thought, he added. The AAR-Invader company should provide more opportunities to the youths of Vidarbha while providing employment. Keeping in mind the future need, MoUs should be made with colleges offering aviation-aeronautical engineering courses. It is also possible to get skilled manpower required for aviation and MRO industry, the minister informed.
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The government wants to build 220 new airports in the next five years. By 2040, Asia will cater to all Asia-Pacific travel, which will result into MRO growth because 40 per cent of fleet capacity will be based in India by that time. The government has planned a ₹10L crore Capex programme which will have a multiplier effect.
– Jyotiraditya Scindia, civil aviation minister
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Civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia addressing a gathering after the inauguration of AAR-Indamer MRO depot in Nagpur.
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Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari along with former union civil aviation minister Praful Patel, CEO of IndiGo Pieter Elbers, chairman of Editorial Board of Lokmat Media Group and former member of Rajya Sabha Dr Vijay Darda, group vice-president (aircraft services) of AAR Corp Dany Kleiman, director of AAR-Indamer Prajay Patel and former MP Dr Vikas Mahatme cutting the cake to mark 100th C check-up of an aircraft at AAR-Indamer MRO depot on Friday.
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