Central Government has identified Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Rajkot and Vadodara airports to be developed by 2022-23 on hub and spoke model cargo stations under newly announced Krishi Udaan Scheme aimed at facilitating and incentivizing movement of agri-produce by air transportation.
The hub and spoke is a distribution model that resembles shape of a bicycle wheel. In the middle is the hub which allows each of the spokes, sprawled out in all directions to meet at the center of the wheel
The ministry of Civil aviation along with AAI will setup up cargo hubs at Agartala, Srinagar, Dibrugarh, Dimapur, Hubbali, Imphal, Jorhat, Lilabari, Lucknow, Silchar, Tezpur, Tirupati and Tuticorin in 2021-22.
Aimed at improving value by transporting perishable agri-products from hilly areas, northeastern states and tribal areas to national as well international destinations, Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched the Krishi UDAAN 2.0 scheme.
“Krishi UDAAN 2.0 will help solve the problem of wastage of agricultural food wastes in the country” Jyotiraditya Scindia, the minister for civil aviation said while adding that the government is committed to doubling farmers income
Under Krishi UDAAN 2.0 MoCA will provide a full waiver of landing, parking, Terminal Navigation and Landing Charges and Route Navigation Facilities Charges for domestic airlines.
Other identified locations, to be set up under Krishi Udaan 2.0 are Jharsuguda, Kozhikode, Mysuru, Puducherry, Vijayawada,Agra, Darbhanga, Gaya, Gwalior, Pakyong, Pantnagar, Shillong, Shimla and Udaipur by 2023-24. Holangi and Salem will be covered by 2024-25.
The ministry will start domestic and international trade routes under the scheme from Leh, Srinagar, Nagpur, Nashik, Ranchi Bagdogra, Raipur and Guwahati along with starting. The routes include Amritsar-Dubai to transport baby corn, Darbhanga and the rest of India to transport Lychees and Sikkim and the rest of India for organic produce.
Setting up a trade route between Chennai, Vizag and Kolkata and East Asian countries to transport seafood is also on cards. Other routes include Agartala-Delhi-Dubai for Pineapple, Dibrugarh-Delhi-Dubai for Mandarin Oranges and Guwahati to Hong Kong for pulses, fruits and vegetables.
The ministry will also develop an online portal E-KUSHAL to facilitate information on Krishi UDAAN 2.0.
