Year-ender: Did 2022 Give Wings To Indian Aviation Sector?
As the Covid-19 pandemic turned into a full-blown crisis in 2020, the global aviation sector came to a standstill and India was no different. The industry which played a huge part in the economic growth of many nations witnessed huge setbacks whether its a loss in revenue or shutting down businesses amid economic hurdles.
As per rating agency Icra, India's aviation industry in FY 2020 witnessed a decline of 2.5 per cent from 4.5 per cent in the domestic air passenger and a loss of nearly Rs 75 to 90 crore per day.
The aviation sector is also integrated into many other sectors like trade and tourism as it delivers goods faster than any other mode of transportation and keeps the multicultural world connected.
However, like every other sector, 2022 became the year of revival for India's aviation industry. In a positive development, in August 2022, domestic air travel in India increased by 51 per cent year-on-year basis.
According to DGCA data, domestic airlines carried 770.70 lakhs passengers from January to August 2022 as compared to 460.45 lakhs passengers during the same period in the previous year.
India is currently the ninth-largest aviation market in the global space, handling 121 million domestic and 41 million international passengers.
Presently, 85 international airlines and five Indian carriers connect over 40 countries. In terms of employment, the sector provides 56.6 million jobs and constitutes over USD 2.2 trillion of the global gross domestic product.
Now let's take a look at the major developments that took place in 2022:
Infusing A Power Budget—
Taking cognisance of the industry’s survival in the last two years, the Centre has allocated Rs 10,667 crore (USD 1.38 billion). Out of the total given money, Rs 600.7 crore has been allotted to the Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) scheme, while Rs 9,259 crore has been shown to AI Asset Holdings for servicing the loans transferred to the particular purpose vehicle for the financial restructuring of Air India.
Also, Rs 165 crore has been allotted for the medical benefits of retired Air India employees.
Rebutting aviation infrastructure—
To push the growth of the industry in post-pandemic, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and other airport developers in February 2022 set a capital outlay target of Rs 91,000 crore ( USD 12.08 billion) for airport infrastructure development, i.e., runways, control towers, etc.
Air India back to home—
After 69 years of being run as a government aviation body, Tata regained control over Air India and became one of the biggest headline creators in the industry. This acquisition will give Tata access to 4,400 domestic and 1,800 international airport slots at Indian airports and 900 slots at foreign airports.
The year 2022 has seen the merging plans of other airlines as well.
Tata, which is a sharp player in the aviation market has announced the merger of Vistara with Air India. After this, Air India is now the second-largest domestic and largest international carrier with a fleet of 218 aircraft.
Towards sustainable solutions—
The Airports Authority of India invested a cost of Rs 3724.34 crores in 2021-22 for constructing these greenfield airports. In the written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Civil Aviation, V. K. Singh said that the Centre has approved the setting up of 21 greenfield airports across the country.
Terminal in a garden—
The inauguration of terminal two of the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) gathered attention as it is the first terminal mainly built using bamboo and will serve 2.5 crore passengers annually. The terminal was built with an estimated amount of Rs 5,000 crore. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated terminal 2 of the Kempegowda International airport.
