"Infra Ready, Airlines Have To Catch Up": Civil Aviation Minister To NDTV At Davos

One of the most exciting sectors in India is civil aviation. Just a couple of years ago, Indian consumers had little choice, but now with several large airlines flying and proactive government policies, Indian aviation is one of the largest in the world.

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, who is attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, told NDTV India is the third-largest domestic civil aviation market today, and the government believes it can be number one.

"We are seeing 10 per cent to 15 per cent growth rate in civil aviation, and one of the priority areas for us is to create a hub," he said.

On whether airlines in India ordering a record number of aircraft could give a big challenge for the government to build matching infrastructure, Mr Naidu said everything is already in place for the sector to grow.

"When we talk about infrastructure, we have been building it for many years. In the last 10 years, from 74 airports we have grown to 159 airports. So the airlines have to catch up now. The demand is there, the infrastructure is there. And even the existing airports which are there, we have expanded their capacity because we believe that in the coming days, traffic is going to grow more and more,"  the Civil Aviation Minister said.

He said the government is trying to encourage aircraft manufacturers to give the orders at the earliest since the demand is already in place. "What we need is more aircraft coming to cater to the demand to provide more connectivity and affordable rates."

On the pace of training aviation professionals - pilots, cabin crew, etc - which have to grow at the same pace at which the sector is growing, Mr Naidu said a good capacity of training is happening to ensure workforce is available when the 2,000-odd aircraft orders from India arrive.

Recent Bomb Threats

Mr Naidu said while the huge number of bomb threat calls received by airlines was a very challenging time, he praised the whole civil aviation team under the Ministry of Home Affairs, especially the investigation agencies, on how they worked together to curb the situation at the earliest.

"From our side, we amended the aircraft security rules and brought in the no-fly list for these perpetrators who are trying to do these kinds of activities. All the threats have been hoax calls," he said, adding the investigation is a thorough process and still going on.

"A couple of instances we were able to catch the person behind it. It was supposed to be more like a prank kind of thing. So it was a child from Chhattisgarh who was caught in Maharashtra. And the other incident from Delhi also where it was like he had some issue with a friend who was traveling in the plane," Mr Naidu said.

The five-day meeting at Davos that began on Monday is exploring how to relaunch growth, harness new technologies and strengthen social and economic resilience, according to the World Economic Forum. The global meeting is seeing participation by nearly 3,000 leaders from over 130 countries, including 350 governmental leaders.

India's participation at Davos aims to strengthen partnerships, attract investment, and position the country as a global leader in sustainable development and technological innovation. India sent five Union ministers, three chief ministers, and ministers from several other states to the WEF this time.