Businessmens' wings clipped without air connectivity

Surat: Last month, the owner of a Rs 1,200-crore diamond polishing and export firm owner took 600 guests to Singapore for a family wedding. But, he did not call his business associates to Surat for the wedding reception. Most of his business associates and clients from the US and European countries did not want to travel by road from Mumbai to Surat, so he had to arrange a separate wedding reception party for them in Mumbai. "Many of them were willing to come here but a single chartered flight would have accommodated just 100 people at the most and I had nearly 500 guests," said S Dholakiya from Harekrishana Exports.
In the absence of any regular plane service to Jaipur, one of the most important centres associated with the city, the Agarwal family from Surat had to take a baraat in a chartered plane. The family is in the packaging business and wanted a comfortable and luxurious marriage celebration for their son. The baraat of 140 members was flown down. Like the Agarwals, there are thousands of prosperous Rajasthani families, who travel regularly to Rajasthan.
Nearly 500 businessmen from seven countries did not visit Surat last month as it is not connected with Mumbai by air.
29/01/11 Himanshu Bhatt & Yagnesh Mehta/Times of India

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Categories: Airports Jan 2011