ETW Staff – New Delhi
The Union Cabinet has cleared the Civil Aviation Policy unveiling a slew of passenger-friendly measures. The Civil Aviation Ministry had sent the Civil Aviation Policy to Cabinet for approval on June 3, 2016.
The policy aims to bolster the domestic aviation sector by tapping its high growth potential with provisions such as capping airfares at Rs 2,500 for a one-hour flight, auctioning of unilateral traffic rights, tax incentives for airlines, maintenance and repair works of aircraft besides mooting 2 per cent levy on all air tickets to fund regional connectivity scheme and providing viability gap funding for airlines to encourage operate on regional routes.
The NDA government had for the first time unveiled the policy draft in November 2014, subsequently replacing it with another draft in October 2015. Initially, the policy was expected to be finalised in the last financial year as certain proposals were to be implemented from April 1, 2016. Since then, the government has been moving back and forth on the matter, primarily to strike a balance between various stakeholders on their glaring differences over issues like the 5/20 rule that allows a carrier to fly abroad only if it has 20 aircraft and has flown domestic for five years.
The issue of international flying norm or the 5/20 rule has witnessed extensive debate, with legacy carriers opposing any changes to the rule, while start-up airlines frantically demanding its scrapping. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, civil aviation minister, Government of India, had last week virtually disapproved the continuance of this rule asking who has benefited from it, indicating that the government could even mull scrapping it.