9 years of UDAN scheme

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) celebrated the ninth anniversary of Regional Connectivity Scheme, UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) on October 21.

What is UDAN scheme?

• UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) is a key component of the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP), 2016.

• The Ministry of Civil Aviation launched the RCS-UDAN scheme on October 21, 2016. 

• The first RCS-UDAN flight was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 27, 2017 from Shimla to Delhi.

• The primary objective of the regional connectivity scheme (RCS) is to facilitate and stimulate regional air connectivity by making it affordable. 

• The regional connectivity scheme will be applicable on route length between 200 to 800 km with no lower limit set for hilly, remote, island and security sensitive regions.

• RCS-UDAN is a demand-driven scheme, where airline operators undertake assessment of demand on particular routes.

Promoting affordability of regional air connectivity is envisioned under RCS by supporting airline operators through:

i) Concessions by central government, state governments and airport operators to reduce the cost of airline operations on regional routes.

ii) Financial support (viability gap funding or VGF) to meet the gap, if any, between the cost of airline operations and expected revenues on such routes. 

Impact of the scheme

• Under the scheme, 649 routes have been operationalised connecting 93 unserved and underserved airports, including 15 heliports and 2 water aerodromes, facilitating over 1.56 crore passengers through 3.23 lakh UDAN flights. 

• To support airline operators and regional infrastructure, the government has disbursed more than Rs 4,300 crore as Viability Gap Funding (VGF) and invested Rs 4,638 crore in airport development under RCS.

• To boost regional and last-mile connectivity, guidelines for seaplane operations were released on August 22, 2024, focusing on safety, security, and operational viability. 

• UDAN Round 5.5 has been launched to invite bids from over 50 identified water bodies across the country.

• Building on the success of the original scheme, a revamped version aims to add 120 new destinations and enable affordable air travel for 4 crore more passengers over the next decade. 

• The focus will be on expanding connectivity to remote, hilly, and aspirational districts, especially in the northeast region, with special support for helipads and smaller airports.

Krishi UDAN Scheme 

• It is designed to support farmers and improve value realisation for agri-produce.

• Krishi UDAN facilitates timely and cost-effective air logistics, particularly from northeast, hilly, and tribal regions. 

• This multi-ministry convergence scheme currently covers 58 airports, with a focus on 25 priority airports and 33 others nationwide.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)