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India, Indonesia look to boost air connectivity
India and Indonesia are looking at opening up new routes to boost air connectivity between the two nations, including a proposal to connect Port Blair in the Andamans and Aceh, the westernmost province of Indonesia.
India and Indonesia are looking at opening up new routes to boost air connectivity between the two nations, including a proposal to connect Port Blair in the Andamans and Aceh, the westernmost province of Indonesia.
“Today I have met with Adani Group, Secretary in the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) Mr. Rajiv Bansil, and Managing Director & CEO of GMR Mr. Kiran Kumar Grandhi. We discussed bilateral relations between Indonesia and India in the field of air and sea transportation,” Indonesia’s transportation minister Budi Karya Sumadi said in an Instagram post on December 15.
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“Thank God the three meetings yielded good results, India wants more connectivity and investment in Indonesia. Especially now that Indonesia has 10 new tourism destinations that can be explored,” his post said.
The two countries are also exploring higher connectivity between Indonesia and southern India, an official close to the matter said. “Flight connectivity between Jakarta and Bangalore and Hyderabad are also being explored,” the official said, requesting anonymity.
Sabang port in Aceh is around 90 nautical miles from the islands of Andaman and Nicobar.
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During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2018 visit to Indonesia, both sides decided to discuss boosting connectivity between the Andamans and Aceh. It was also decided to set up a joint task force to undertake projects on port-related infrastructure in and around Sabang island in Indonesia.
International flights from the Port Blair airport had not started despite authorities waiving off value-added tax on jet fuel and landing charges, the standing committee on home affairs said in a report on December 12.
The committee said starting international flights from the Andamans will boost tourism by attracting foreign tourists. The matter should be taken up on a priority, it said. The home ministry had said that the civil aviation ministry has been requested to encourage airlines to start international flights from Port Blair to nearby cities in south-east Asia.
