New Delhi: The Ministry of Civil Aviation has enlisted the services of Deloitte, the reputed consultancy firm, to study the Rohit Nandan Committee report on air connectivity and recommend measures within a month to connect smaller towns and cities on a low-cost basis.
The Committee, which was set in April 2011 "to explore policy initiatives for expansion of air connectivity in the country", submitted its report in January 2012.
Deloitte's suggestions, according to sources in the ministry, would form the basis for a policy that will be framed by the Centre to bring smaller towns and cities within the air route network in due course.
The Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (Capa) in its 2009 report on low cost terminals concluded that "no Indian should be more than 50 km away from an airport". The Indian authorities find this surmise overambitious in view of the country's economic situation and availability of resources.
There are 457 functional and non-functional airports. Of these, 91 are managed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), and 125 by the armed forces.
10/01/13 Devesh Kumar/Business Today
