PNS | DEHRADUN
Along with expanding the road network, the State government is also working on strengthening the air service especially to facilitate access to remote areas. Heliports have been constructed in eight locations during the past two years while the construction of more heliports is underway in other locations. Along with this, the helipads existing in 100 locations are enabling accessibility to locations which may be otherwise difficult to reach or may take longer time to reach.
According to officials, the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) has constructed heliports in Dehradun, Srinagar, Gauchar, Chinyalisaud, Haldwani, Almora, Pithoragarh and Munsyari during the past two years. Regular air services are being provided from these heliports. UCADA has started work on constructed heliports at Triyuginarayan, Jyotirmath, Mussoorie, Ramnagar, Bageshwar and Haridwar.
The construction of heliports in these locations is expected to be completed in a year. The authority’s additional chief executive officer Dayanand Saraswati informed that in addition to the constructed and under construction heliports, more than 100 helipads have also been constructed in various parts of the State. These are available for operation for any passenger or emergency service. The basic infrastructure is now available for air connectivity in remote locations of the State, he added.
In addition to this, the State government is also working on the expansion of the Dehradun and Pantnagar airports. The process of land acquisition for these tasks is under process. The Pantnagar airport will be developed as a green field airport while the Dehradun airport will be developed according to international standards.
Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that enabling the common citizen of the nation to travel by air is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream. Work is being executed under Central and State government schemes to facilitate this in Uttarakhand. This will also result in boosting pilgrimage and tourism activities in the State, the CM added.
