When will Dispur awake from its slumber?

A CORRESPONDENT

LAKHIMPUR: It is indeed a matter of concern that despite much hype, the daytime flight services between Lilabari Airport in Lakhimpur and Guwahati have been non-operational since July, 2019. What makes the matter even serious is that this poor state of aviation has been witnessed at such a juncture when the Union Government has taken several initiatives to develop the Aviation sector in areas of modernization, airport upgradation, enhancement of regional connectivity and development of other related services. Potential air passengers of entire North Assam including Lakhimpur district and Arunachal Pradesh are demanding regular flights between Guwahati and Lilabari.

However, the State government is yet to awake from its slumber! This is despite the repeated declarations and assurances to enhance air connectivity with other States from the Lilabari Airport made by Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, Lakhimpur MP Pradan Baruah and Lakhimpur MLA Utpal Dutta on several occasions.

At present, the Lilabari Airport is connected to Kolkata only by a single regional flight service of the Air India on a daily basis. While this flight reaches Lilabari at 6:55 pm, it departs from the airport at 7:20 pm. However, this flight faces frequent cancellation.

Further, though the private sector airlines company, SpiceJet was awarded a direct flight between Kolkata and Lilabari under the UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) scheme, this flight got suspended in July last year.

SpiceJet had declared the flight under the second phase of UDAN scheme or ‘Regional Connectivity Scheme’ (RCS) as the Lilabari Airport has been declared as an “under-served” RCS Airport. The airlines company started the operation of the Kolkata-Lilabari and Lilabari-Kolkata flights with effect from January 15, 2019. Subsequently, SpiceJet also started operating its flights from Guwahati to Kolkata under the third phase of the ‘RCS-Udan Scheme’ from March 31, 2019. The operations of these flights were a great relief in flight connectivity for the people of North Assam along with the neighbouring State of Arunachal Pradesh.

Unfortunately, the SpiceJet Airlines suspended its operation from Lilabari Airport on July 1, 2019. Since then, there has been no flight of SpiceJet Airlines between Lilabari and Guwahati. Interestingly enough, the SpiceJet did not submit any letter regarding the suspension of its flights, informed sources. Its officials simply informed the Lilabari Airport Office that the flights had been suspended due to the “low load” factor, adding that the same flight had been diverted to the International route from Guwahati to Dhaka, which has been operational since July 1, 2019, but suspended subsequently.

Notably, the primary objective of the UDAN scheme is to connect the small cities of the country at affordable fares. Sources added that Lilabari was the first destination of SpiceJet in Assam under the UDAN scheme; and it was expected that with the commencement of this flight, there would be an impetus to the tourism potential of Lakhimpur district in particular and the State in general.

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