Under the Indian government’s UDAN and regional connectivity scheme, a brand new airport was opened at Kalaburagi, Karnataka. The first flight from Kalaburagi Airport to Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru departed on November 22, 2019. The airport was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Karnataka. The airport has been constructed in keeping with the UDAN, the regional connectivity scheme of the Government of India. It is spread across an area of 742 acres and approximately ₹176 crore was invested into it. The town of Kalaburagi can be easily accessed from the airport as it is only 13.8 kms from the city. For now, the airport will only have three flights per week operated on Monday, Friday and Sunday.
The opening of this airport is a matter of pride for the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation as they aimed to gain direct connectivity to North Karnataka with other commercial centres. From the tourism standpoint, this airport will also provide easy access to important tourist destinations like Buddha Vihar, Sharana Basaveshwara Temple and the famous Gulbarga Fort.
The new airport has been built keeping in minds the standards and regulations set by the Airports Authority of India, under the supervision of the DGCA.
As of today, 230 routes and 42 airports have been activated under the UDAN scheme, which projects to connect all the states and union territories of India with around 700 routes. This will pave the way for an emerging segment of regional travel in India’s domestic aviation market.
