Bhubaneswar:
Three international airlines are ready to begin flights from the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar after the state government decided to slash the VAT on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), sources said.
The airlines - Fly Dubai, Silk Air (Singapore) and Air Arabia - were encouraged about beginning services after the VAT on ATF was slashed from 20 to 5 per cent with the airport also offering free night parking.
Chairing a meeting on review of flight operations, Chief Secretary JK Mohapatra said that reduction in the VAT should lead to an increase in the number of flights from the airport.
Regional Director (Eastern) of Airports Authority of India, S Bhaduri, has informed the state government that 20 airlines have been contacted about opening international and domestic services covering Bhubaneswar.
The representatives of the airlines are said to have expressed a desire to include BPIA in their schedule of operations and have asked the state government to consult the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation for finalisation of routes.
Sources said the airlines have prepared six-month summer and winter schedules.
Fly Dubai had proposed to commence operations from January 1 of this year, although the airline could not go ahead with the plan. It is now looking to start a Dubai-Bhubaneswar service from BPIA from April 1.
Silk Air, the low-cost Singapore airline, is interested in starting Singapore-Kolkata-Bhubaneswar and Bhubaneswar-Kolkata -Singapore services. It is also planning to fly Singapore-Vizag-Bhubaneswar and Bhubaneswar-Vizag-Singapore routes.
Air Arabia, too, is looking to include Bhubaneswar on its network.
Several domestic airlines also have proposed flights covering Bhubaneswar.
While SpiceJet is already running three-four weekly flights, Go Air has proposed to commence operations.
Besides, Indigo, already operating from Odisha, has shown an interest in three-four additional flights.
These airlines are expected to start operations from April 1 of this year.
The meeting also discussed the development of Jharsuguda airport in the state.
Although the state government has already made a commitment of Rs 50 crore as its contribution towards the project, AAI has requested it to release additional funds of another Rs 50 crore.