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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 861
( TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 4th December 2025 )
GROWTH OF AVIATION INFRASTRUCTURE
861. SHRI CHAVDA VINOD LAKHAMSHI
SHRI RAJPALSINH MAHENDRASINH JADAV
SMT. LOVELY ANAND
Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION
be pleased to state:-
(a) the total number of airports, heliports and water aerodromes currently
operational in the country along with the details of their growth during the last
ten years, year-wise;
(b) the number of operational air routes and the total number of passengers
travelled during 2024-25;
(c) the concrete measures taken by the Government to make air travel more
affordable and accessible for the common citizens till date;
(d) the latest initiatives taken by the Government for modernization and
expansion of airport infrastructure in the country including in Tier-2 and Tier-3
cities to meet global standards; and
(e) the details of Viability Gap Funding (VGF) provided to the airlines thereof?
ANSWER
Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION
(Shri Murlidhar Mohol)
(a) : India's aviation industry has experienced significant growth in the past
decade. The number of operational airports in the country has more than doubled
from 74 in 2014 to 164 in 2025. The major factor contributing to this expansion
is the Regional Connectivity Scheme-Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (RCS-UDAN),
launched in 2016 to enhance regional air connectivity and make air travel
affordable.
(b) : A total of 23.96 Crore Passengers (16.55 Crore Domestic Passengers + 7.41
Crore International Passengers) have travelled through Scheduled Domestic and
International Flights during the Financial Year 2024-25. As per the approvedschedule, state-wise connectivity of Winter Schedule-2024 and Summer
Schedule-2025 is attached as Annexure-I and Annexure-II.
(c) to (e) : To ensure the affordability of regional air travel, the UDAN scheme
provides financial incentives to airline operators on regional routes that include:
Concessions by the Central Government, State Governments/ Union Territories
and airport operators to reduce airline operation costs and also the Viability Gap
Funding (VGF) to bridge the gap between operational costs and expected
revenues on such routes. The airfare on the RCS seats on which VGF is provided
to the Selected Airline Operators (SAOs) is for a 3-year tenure and is capped at a
subsidized rate, which is liable to be indexed every quarter. The above measures
aim to strengthen affordability, accessibility and overall passenger convenience
in the aviation sector, thereby promoting regional development and economic
growth. VGF amount of Rs. 4352 crores has been disbursed to support the
Selected Airline Operators.
Modernisation and development of infrastructure facilities at the existing airports
is a continuous process, which is undertaken by the Airports Authority of India
(AAI) or the concerned Airport Operator / Developer depending upon traffic
demand, commercial feasibility, operational requirements for safety of aircraft
operation and demand from airlines.
******Annexure I
State Wise Air Connectivity – Winter Schedule 2024
Sl. State Names of Cities Air linked No of
No Airport
. s
States
1 Andhra Pradesh Rajamundry, Tirupati, Vijayawada, 6
Vizag,Cuddapah, Kurnool
2 Arunachal Pradesh Pasighat,Tezu, Ziro, Hollongi 4
3 Assam Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Jorhat, Lilabari, 6
Silchar, Rupsi
4 Bihar Gaya, Patna, Darbhanga 3
5 Chhattisgarh Raipur, Bilaspur, Jagdalpur 3
6 Delhi Delhi 1
7 Goa Goa , Mopa (new Goa) 2
8 Gujarat Ahmedabad, Bhuj, Jamnagar, Hirasar, 9
Surat, Vadodara, Kandla, Keshod,
Bhavnagar
9 Haryana - 0
10 Himachal Pradesh Dharamshala, Kullu, Shimla 3
11 Jharkhand Ranchi, Deoghar, Jamshedpur 3
12 Karnataka Bangalore, Belgaum, Mangalore, 8
Hubli,Vidyanagar, Mysore,Gulbarga,
Shivmoga
13 Kerala Cochin, Trivandrum,Kannur, Kozhikode 414 Madhya Pradesh Bhopal, Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur, 5
Khajurao
15 Maharashtra Aurangabad, Mumbai, Nagpur, Pune, 11
Nasik, Kolhapur, Shirdi, Nanded,
Sindhudurg, Gondia, Jalgaon
16 Manipur Imphal 1
17 Meghalaya Shillong 1
18 Mizoram Aizwal 1
19 Nagaland Dimapur 1
20 Orissa Bhubaneswar, Jharsuguda, Rourkela, 5
Jeypore, Utkela
21 Punjab Amritsar, Bhatinda, Ludhiana, Jalandhar 4
22 Rajasthan Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Bikaner, 6
Jaisalmer, Kishangarh
23 Sikkim -
24 Tamil Nadu Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Trichy, 6
Tuticorin, Salem
25 Telangana Hyderabad 1
26 Tripura Agartala 1
27 Uttar Pradesh Agra,Ayodhya, Prayagraj Gorakhpur, 14
Lucknow, Varanasi,Kanpur, Hindon,
Bareilly, Azamgarh, Chitrakoot, Aligarh,
Moradabad, Shravasti
28 Uttarakhand Dehradun, Pant Nagar, Pithoragarh 3
29 West Bengal Bagdogra, Kolkata, Durgapur, 4
CoochBehar
Union Territories
1 Andaman & Port Blair 1
Nicobar Islands2 Lakshadweep Agatti 1
Islands
3 Chandigarh Chandigarh 1
4 Dadra & Nagar -
Haveli
5 Daman & Diu Diu 1
6 Puducherry Pondicherry 1
7 Jammu & Kashmir Jammu, Srinagar 2
8 Ladakh Leh, 1
Number of cities connected by Scheduled domestic carriers 124
Annexure II
State Wise Air Connectivity – Summer Schedule 2025
Sl. No of
State & Union
No Names of Cities Air linked Airport
Territories
. s
States
1 Andhra Pradesh Cuddapah, Kurnool, Rajamundry, Tirupati, 6
Vijayawada, Vizag,
2 Arunachal Hollongi ,Pasighat, Tezu, Ziro, 4
Pradesh
3 Assam Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Jorhat, Lilabari, Silchar 5
4 Bihar Darbhanga ,Gaya, Patna 3
5 Chhattisgarh Ambikapur, Bilaspur, Jagdalpur, , Raipur 4
6 Delhi Delhi 17 Goa Goa , Mopa (new Goa) 2
8 Gujarat Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Bhuj, Hirasar, 10
Jamnagar, Kandla, Keshod, Porbandar, Surat,
Vadodara
9 Haryana - 0
10 Himachal Dharamshala, Kullu, Shimla 3
Pradesh
11 Jharkhand Deoghar, Jamshedpur, Ranchi 3
12 Karnataka Bangalore, Belgaum, Bidar, Hubli, Gulbarga, 9
Mangalore, Mysore, Shivmoga, Vidyanagar
13 Kerala Cochin, Kannur, Kozhikode, Trivandrum 4
14 Madhya Bhopal, Datia, Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur, 7
Pradesh Khajurao, Rewa
15 Maharashtra Aurangabad, Gondia, Jalgaon, Kolhapur, 12
Mumbai, Nagpur, Nanded , Nashik, Pune,
Shirdi, Sindhudurg, Solapur
16 Manipur Imphal 1
17 Meghalaya Shillong 1
18 Mizoram Aizwal 1
19 Nagaland Dimapur 1
20 Orissa Bhubaneswar, Jeypore, Jharsuguda, Rourkela, 5
Utkela
21 Punjab Amritsar, Bhatinda, Jalandhar, Ludhiana 4
22 Rajasthan Bikaner, Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, 6
Kishangarh, Udaipur
23 Sikkim Pakyong 1
24 Tamil Nadu Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem, Trichy, 6
Tuticorin,
25 Telangana Hyderabad 1
26 Tripura Agartala 127 Uttar Pradesh Agra, Ayodhya, Aligarh, Bareilly, Chitrakoot, 13
Gorakhpur, Hindon, Kanpur, Lucknow,
Prayagraj, Moradabad, Shravasti, Varanasi
28 Uttarakhand Dehradun, Pant Nagar, Pithoragarh 3
29 West Bengal Bagdogra, CoochBehar, Durgapur, Kolkata 4
Union Territories
1 Andaman & Port Blair 1
Nicobar Islands
2 Lakshadweep Agatti 1
Islands
3 Chandigarh Chandigarh 1
4 Dadra & Nagar -
Haveli
5 Daman & Diu Diu 1
6 Pondicherry Pondicherry 1
Jammu & Jammu, Srinagar
7 Kashmir 2
8 Ladakh Leh, 1
Number of cities connected by Scheduled domestic carriers 129