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New Delhi : Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia along with the Minister of State in the Ministry of Civil Aviation, General (Retd.) Dr. V.K. Singh, and Member of Parliament, Bareilly, Santosh Gangwar, flagged off the new flight connecting Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh) with Mumbai (Maharashtra) at a virtual ceremony on August 12, 2021.
Pradeep Singh Kharola, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), and Joint Secretary, MoCA, Usha Padhee, along with other officials of the MoCA and AAI were also present during the flag-off event.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said, “Today marks another momentous day for the civil aviation sector of the country. The commencement of the flight operations on the Bareilly – Mumbai route from today and Bareilly – Bangalore route from August 14, 2021, will not only improve transportation facilities in the region but will also open immense opportunities in tourism, education, industry, and trade and commerce for the region. Moreover, we are also increasing the frequency of operations to daily between Delhi-Bareilly from August 26, 2021, he said. These direct flights will not only benefit the people of Bareilly but also from the neighbouring regions such as Nainital and Ranikhet also.”
The Bareilly airport has been upgraded for commercial flight operations under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (RCS-UDAN) of the Government of India. On March 8, 2021, it became the 56th airport to commence operations under the UDAN scheme, with an all-women crew flight on the Delhi-Bareilly route. Now, Mumbai is the second city connected with Bareilly with direct flights and direct connectivity of the city to Bangalore will be third in series, according to a PIB release.
Bareilly is the 8th airport of Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Hindon, Agra, and Prayagraj. The Trishul Military Airbase, Bareilly, belongs to the Indian Air Force and the land was handed over to the Airport Authority of India for construction of the interim civil aviation operations. The upgradation was undertaken by the AAI at a cost of Rs. 65 crore.
Lakhs of people visit Bareilly for the NathNagri (known for the four Shiva temples located in four corners of the region – DhopeshwarNath, MadniNath, AlakhaNath and TrivatiNath), Ala Hazrat, Shah Sharafat Miyan and Khankahe Niyazia, Zari Nagari and historically important sites like as Sanjashya (where the Buddha descended from Tushita to earth). The city is also a centre for furniture manufacturing and cotton, cereal, and sugar trading.
Till date, 363 routes and 59 airports (including 5 heliports and 2 water aerodromes) have been operationalised under the UDAN scheme. The number of domestic passengers is on the rise as flying emerges as a preferred, safe as time-saving mode of transport. On August 11, 2021, a total of 1,98,495 passengers travelled on 1,798 flights. Total flight movement was 3,592 and total passenger movement was 3,95,143.