Air India divestment has transformed civil aviation industry
The government is committed to increase the number of airports in the country to 200 in coming three to five years from 148 as of now, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia has told an international conference.
Further, he pointed out that the disinvestment of Air India has brought about a transformation in civil aviation industry, not only for passengers and airports, but also for MROs, for manufacturing sector and for cargo,
“The huge orders of aircraft placed by Air India and Indigo and the emergence of new players like Akasha is another example of the changes that are taking place in Indian civil aviation industry,” he said at the inauguration of ‘International Aerospace Conference: Moving Towards Inclusive Global Value Chains’.
Nearly, 1,000 more aircraft have been ordered by Indian airlines in addition to 700 in operations in the country, he told the conference jointly organised by the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on 1-2 September 2023 in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh.
The thrust on Regional Connectivity, UDAN, has given birth to 4 new regional airlines in the country, he said. “The hub and connectivity network we have been talking about for decades is a reality in India today.”
Scindia also called on the global industry to leverage the opportunities available in the Indian aerospace sector by investing in the country. The growth of Civil Aviation sector is an imperative now for the growth of India.
He noted that while civil aviation was once considered an elitist product, the introduction of the UDAN scheme has effectively “democratized” it, making it accessible to a wider cross-section of the population. He said civil aviation needs to grow as a product and not just a service.
Scindia said risks in supply chain logistics needed to be offset and companies across the world are looking for a new promised land to build new capacities. The country offered that opportunity.
“India has tremendous possibilities,” he said while delivering his inaugural speech at the conference themed around Inclusive Global Value Chains.
Scindia also said that it was for the first time in the history of India that an airport is being built in the record time of 15 months. He was referring to the new domestic terminal at Gwalior airport spread on 2.5 lakh square meters of land. The airport will be inaugurated in December this year.
In the conference, panels of luminaries discussed a range of issues pertaining to global value chains and how to make them all-inclusive.
The conference covered:
Spawning Global Value Chains in Design & Robust Aerospace Manufacturing: Importance of MSMEs;
Integrated Global MRO Services;
Advanced Technologies in Aerospace & Air Mobility: Changing Skill Sets;
Building Scale in Aerospace Manufacturing.
In the last couple of decades, there has been a mammoth increase in Global Value Chains which has transformed the global economy, noted conference delegates.
Over these years, GVCs have worked as an engine of growth and driven economic growth, technological innovation, and job creation.
The conference will further contribute to preparing India towards matching the challenges that the global supply chain offers, said the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
The conference is a G20 initiative in the aerospace sector under G20 and B20 priority, focusing on developing inclusive global value chains for Global trade and Investment and aims to promote and strengthen trade and investment among the G20 countries. fiinews.com
