19 states sign MoUs for next phase of UDAN scheme to develop 100 airstrips from existing unused airstrips
Nineteen state governments signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the Ministry of Civil Aviation to launch the next phase of the UDAN regional connectivity scheme
The phase introduces a "challenge mode" mechanism aimed at converting nearly 100 existing but unused or underused airstrips into fully operational airports
The initiative marks a shift in emphasis from simply connecting new locations to building long-term operational and commercial viability at these sites
The MoUs formalise state-level commitments (land, security clearances, local concessions) needed to bring these airstrips into active use
UDAN's "Challenge Mode" — From Airline-Led Bidding to Demand-Led Route Proposals
Since UDAN's launch, routes were primarily selected through airlines bidding for Viability Gap Funding (VGF) on routes of their own choosing, which occasionally led to awarded routes that were never actually operated due to weak underlying demand. Challenge mode restructures this by letting states, airport operators, and local stakeholders — not just airlines — nominate specific locations based on demonstrated demand.
Key Details
- Under the original bidding structure, route selection ran through a two-stage electronic bidding process, prioritising airline proposals requiring the lowest VGF per seat — a system that measured cost-efficiency for the exchequer but not necessarily ground-level demand
- Challenge mode instead allows state governments, airport developers, and regional bodies to identify and propose airstrips with tourism, business, or demographic potential, shifting initial demand assessment away from airlines alone
- The mechanism is intended to reduce the historical problem of routes being awarded on paper but not sustained in practice, addressing a recurring criticism (including by the Comptroller and Auditor General) of underutilised UDAN routes
- This is the operational vehicle through which the current round of 100 targeted airstrips will be selected and sequenced for development
The 19 state MoUs signed today operationalise challenge mode as UDAN's method for this phase, replacing pure airline-driven bidding with a state- and demand-led selection process for the 100 airstrips targeted.
Aerodrome, Airport, and Airstrip — The Regulatory Building Blocks
UPSC current affairs frequently uses these terms loosely, but each has a distinct regulatory meaning under Indian civil aviation law, relevant to how an "unused airstrip" becomes an "operational airport."
Key Details
- "Aerodrome" is the broadest legal/ICAO term — any defined land or water area, with associated buildings and equipment, used wholly or partly for aircraft arrival, departure, and surface movement; airports and airstrips are both types of aerodromes
- An "airport" is an aerodrome that has met specific certification requirements (safety, technical, regulatory) to be licensed for use, typically with surfaced runways and passenger facilities; an "airstrip" is a more basic, often unlicensed or minimally developed landing strip
- In India, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issues the mandatory aerodrome licence under the Aircraft Rules, 1937; without this licence, no aerodrome can host scheduled commercial operations
- Under RCS-UDAN's own classification, an "unserved" airport/airstrip has no scheduled commercial flights, while an "underserved" one has seven or fewer scheduled departures a week — the distinction determines VGF eligibility and priority
Converting "existing unused airstrips" into "operational airports" — as this MoU round aims to do — is precisely the regulatory journey from an unlicensed aerodrome to a DGCA-licensed one capable of hosting scheduled commercial services.
NABH Nirman — India's Wider Airport-Capacity Expansion Vision
UDAN's route-and-airstrip-level push sits inside a larger, capital-intensive national push to expand airport infrastructure capacity, launched a year after UDAN itself.
Key Details
- NABH Nirman (Next Generation Airports for Bharat), announced in the 2018-19 Union Budget, aims to expand India's airport capacity more than fivefold to handle about a billion trips a year
- It envisages developing around 100 airports over 15 years with an estimated investment of about ₹4 lakh crore, resting on three pillars: fair land acquisition, long-term master planning, and balanced economics for stakeholders
- NABH Nirman is distinct from UDAN's VGF-based operating subsidy model: it is primarily an infrastructure capital-expenditure programme (building/upgrading airports), while UDAN separately subsidises the operating economics of flying underserved routes
- Both schemes fall under the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the broader National Civil Aviation Policy, 2016 framework, and are complementary rather than overlapping — infrastructure creation (NABH Nirman) versus route viability (UDAN)
The 100-airstrip target announced today functions at the intersection of both programmes — NABH Nirman-style capacity building at the airstrip level, feeding into UDAN's operational and VGF framework once routes go live.
- States that signed MoUs in this phase: 19
- Airstrips targeted for conversion into operational airports: nearly 100
- DGCA underserved-airport threshold: 7 or fewer scheduled departures per week
- NABH Nirman (2018-19 Budget): ~100 airports over 15 years, ~₹4 lakh crore investment, aiming for over 5x airport capacity to handle about 1 billion trips/year
- Regulatory basis for aerodrome licensing in India: Aircraft Rules, 1937 (DGCA-administered)
- Governing policy framework: National Civil Aviation Policy, 2016, under the Ministry of Civil Aviation