Economic Survey 2023: Air Traffic Rebounds To Pre-Pandemic Level, UDAN Scheme A Multiplier For Regional Connectivity

The Economic Survey 2022-23 said that the air travel in the country has rebounded to almost pre-pandemic level, mainly driven by containment of Covid-19 infections and the lifting of travel restrictions worldwide.

Union Minister for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday tabled in Parliament the Economic Survey 2022-2023, which reviews how the economy performed in this fiscal year and the road ahead for the next year.

The Economic Survey 2022-23 pointed out that while in FY21, there was a 54 per cent decline in the air-traffic and 66 per cent decline in passenger traffic, FY22 saw a recovery, mainly led by the domestic sector.

The current financial year (FY23) has further shown a rebound, with both passenger and cargo movement close to the pre-Covid-19 levels, the survey said.

The total number of passengers carried in December 2022 stood at 150.1 lakh, which was 106.4 per cent of the pre-Covid level (average for 11 months from April 2019 to February 2020). Similarly, during November 2022, total air cargo tonnage stood at 2.5 lakh MT, which is 89 per cent of the pre-Covid levels.

The survey noted that the civil aviation sector in India has great potential owing to growing demand from the middle class, growth in population and tourism, higher disposable incomes, favourable demographics, and greater penetration of aviation infrastructure.

Highlighting the achievement of the UDAN scheme which successfully completed five years in 2022, the survey pointed out that the scheme has considerably enhanced regional connectivity through the opening of airports in India’s hinterland.

More than one crore air passengers have availed themselves of the benefit of the UDAN scheme since its inception on 27 April 2017. The scheme focuses on the connectivity between the Tier-2 and 3 cities in the country and the number of beneficiaries will increase manifold as the connectivity improves between unserved and underserved airports.

Under this scheme, the government has approved a budget of Rs 4,500 crore for revival of existing unserved/underserved airports/airstrips of the state governments, Airports Authority of India, public sector undertakings and civil enclaves.

The government has also accorded 'in-principle' approval for the setting up of 21 greenfield airports across the country, noted the survey.

Also Read: Recovery Complete, India Back On Pre-Pandemic Growth Path: Economic Survey 2023

Economic Survey 2023: How The Russia-Ukraine War Dented The Western Economies

India's GDP To Grow At 6-6.8 Per Cent In FY24: Economic Survey 2023

Rise In Capex, World-Class Advancements In Both Freight and Passenger Transit Seen In Indian Railways: Economic Survey 2023

Economic Survey 2023: How India Braved The Global Inflation Storm Post-Ukraine War