Highlights of new civil aviation policy

Highlights and vision of India's first integrated civil aviation policy that was approved at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi: - Make India 3rd largest civil aviation market by 2022 from 9th - Push domestic travel to 300 million passengers by 2022 from 80 million now - Scheduled operations to expand from 77 airports now to 127 by 2019 - Cargo volumes to increase 4 times to 10 million tonnes by 2027 - Cap of Rs 2,500 per ticket on regional routes - Sticky 5/20 rule for airlines to fly overseas replaced with new norms: 20 aircraft or 20 per cent deployment on domestic routes - Flexible, liberalized open skies and code share agreement - Incentives for aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul to make India a hub in South Asia - Skilling of 3.3 lakh personnel by 2025 with certification - Focus also on development of green-field airports and heliports - Focus on ease of doing business through deregulation, procedures and e-governance - Promoting "Make In India" in civil aviation sector - Detained scheme soon to fund operators in regional routes - Bilateral rights and code share agreements to be liberalised - Open skies policy with countries in South Asia on reciprocal basis - Encouragement to states to develop airports - Compensation to Airports Authority for airports within 150 km of existing ones - Promotion of chopper usage with separate regulations soon - Promotion of four heli-hubs initially - Facilitation of helicopter emergency medical services - Customs duty on parts for maintenance units rationalised - Ground handling policy to be replaced with new framework to ensure fair competition - Three ground handling agencies including Air India arms at all major airports - At non-major airports, operator to decide number of ground handling agencies - Domestic scheduled airline, chopper services allowed self-handling at airports