Telangana: Airports are not listed on the UDAN map after 5 years

Hyderabad: Even though the Ministry of Civil Aviation’s main regional connectivity programme, UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik), has been in operation for five years, the state has not yet built a regional airport.

The initiative began on October 21, 2016, and the first flight was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 27, 2017. In Tier II and Tier III cities, air connection is the program’s main objective.

In 2014, there were 74 active airports. This number has now reached 141 as a result of the UDAN program, according to a statement issued on Wednesday by the Union Civil Aviation Ministry.

Telangana proposed three greenfield and three brownfield airports long back. Further, the state government wrote several letters but there has been no progress.

The TRS government proposed to take up the development of three greenfield airports at Jakranpally (Nizamabad), Palvancha (Bhadradri Kothagudem), and Mahabubnagar, and three brownfield airports at Mamnoor, (Warangal) and Basanth Nagar (Peddapally) and Adilabad.

Techno-Economic Feasibility (TEF) reports in respect of all the airports have been submitted. But, the Centre says that the state did not give site clearance for the airports.