Parliament Question: Kushinagar airport

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 3370 TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 23rd March 2026 KUSHINAGAR AIRPORT 3370. SHRI RATANJIT PRATAP NARAIN SINGH Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION be pleased to state:- (a) the details of new domestic routes operationalized from Kushinagar International airport during the last six months; (b) the current status of international flight operations connecting Kushinagar to Southeast Asian Buddhist pilgrimage centers; (c) the month-on-month passenger footfall recorded at the airport during the current financial year; (d) the details of infrastructure upgrades, including cargo handling facilities, currently underway at the airport; and (e) the incentives provided to airline operators to maintain flight frequencies from this location? ANSWER Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION (Shri Murlidhar Mohol) (a) to (e): There have been no scheduled commercial flight operations at Kushinagar International Airport in the current financial year. The infrastructure upgradation works currently underway at Kushinagar Airport include: Widening of the existing perimeter road and construction of a new perimeter road, provision of bird chaser huts and miscellaneous civil works. At present, no dedicated air cargo operations are available at Kushinagar Airport. The Ministry of Civil Aviation is taking proactive steps to enhance air connectivity from Kushinagar Airport, including holding stakeholder consultations and engaging with airlines through meetings to facilitate the introduction of viable flight operations. 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 onwhich 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. ******