Start operation in 30 days, Uttarakhand HC tells airline

The Uttarakhand high court on Monday directed the Deccan Charters Private Limited to start its operation within 30 days on Delhi-Pantnagar-Dehradun route as per the Letter of Award (LoA) dated March 30, 2017

Published on: Sep 26, 2018, 05:57:23 IST

Hindustan Times, Nainital | By Neeraj Santoshi

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The Uttarakhand high court on Monday directed the Deccan Charters Private Limited to start its operation within 30 days on Delhi-Pantnagar-Dehradun route as per the Letter of Award (LoA) dated March 30, 2017.

An airplane is seen at Santacruz in Mumbai, India. (HT Representative Photo)

It also directed the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to take steps to terminate the LoA issued in favour of Deccan Charters Private Limited on March 30, 2017, if the flights are not made operational within six weeks.

The court asked the Uttarakhand government, the ministry of civil aviation and the Airports Authority of India to enhance the regional connectivity as per the MoU signed in 2016.

“The LoA was issued in favour of Deccan Charters Private Limited as it was the highest bidder but it has not come forward to make the flights operational. Now it would be open to the Airports Authority of India to award the LoA to the second highest bidder,” the order said.

“The agencies concerned shall issue no-objection certificates (NOCs) in favour of the second highest bidder within 15 days,” it added.

The court said in case all the bidders refuse to operate in this sector, the Airports Authority of India may consider the case of Heritage Aviation Private Limited to operate on the route when it begins its operations in Uttarakhand on October 8, 2018.

The directions were issued by acting chief justice Rajiv Sharma and justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari while hearing a public interest litigation filed earlier this year by Pankaj Miglani. The high court also sought the presence of under secretary, ministry of civil aviation, along with assistant section officer in the ministry in the court on the next date of hearing on October 11.

The oral application of the petitioner, Deccan Charters Private Limited, Bangalore, through its managing director, Heritage Aviation Private Limited, New Delhi, and Airports Authority of India, through its chairman, were made parties (respondents )in the case.

“The tenders were floated by the Airports Authority of India for selected airline operators under the regional connectivity scheme -- UDAN of the ministry of civil aviation. Deccan Charters Private Limited participated in the tendering process. The Letter of Award (LoA) was issued in favour of Deccan Charters Private Limited on March, 30 2017. The operations were to be commenced by the Deccan Charters Private Limited on the routes of the proposal in the month of August, 2017 after signing of the Selected Airline Operator Agreement on network of IGI Airport Delhi– Pantnagar-Dehradun-Pantnagar-IGI Airport Delhi,” the court said.

The court said it was surprising that though the Letter of Award was issued in favour of Deccan Charters Private Limited on March 30, 2017, it has not yet started its operation, inconveniencing the residents of the area.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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