Measures for improvement in Aviation Sector

• The Government has undertaken hi-tech measures for improvement in the civil aviation sector in the country.
• Airports need to be integrated with other modes of transport like Railways and Highways, enabling seamless transportation to all parts of the country.
• In many remote, hilly and inaccessible areas of the country, air transport is the quickest and sometimes the only mode of travel available.

Some important key measures taken by the government:

• The policy on Digi Yatra aims to provide a contactless, seamless and paperless handling of passengers at airports from the entry gate of the terminal to the boarding point.
• Airports Authority of India (AAI) plans to invest around Rs. 25,000 crores in the next 4-5 years for expansion/ development of existing and new terminals.
• Modernisation of air navigation infrastructure has been taken up.
• Route rationalization in the Indian airspace is being carried out in coordination with Indian Air Force, using modern air traffic flow management techniques to develop shorter flight routes and lower fuel consumption by airlines.
• Greater use of digital technology is being encouraged at air cargo terminals to enhance efficiency and to reduce dwell times.
• E-Governance is being enabled at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) for most of their stakeholder interactions and internal processes.
• Online ‘examination on demand’ is being planned by DGCA for flying cadets to enhance the number of licensed pilots in the country.

Digi Yatra:

• The policy on Digi Yatra has been released by the Ministry of Civil Aviation in August 2018.
• DigiYatra envisages a connected ecosystem enhancing the seamless travel experience for the passengers and simultaneously improving the security.
• It is built on 4 key pillars, like Connected Passengers, Connected Airports, Connected Flying, and Connected Systems.
• Passengers will be automatically processed based on facial recognition system at checkpoints like; Entry point check, Entry into Security Check, Aircraft Boarding, Additionally, this will also facilitate self-Bag Drop and Check-in, using facial recognition to identify pax and data recall.
• Digi Yatra will facilitate paperless travel and avoid identity checks at multiple points.

Benefits of Digi Yatra:

• Passengers need not show boarding pass or ID at multiple checkpoints.
• Minimum human intervention. Less queuing time.
• The security is enhanced as the system will map the passenger with the PNR. Only bonafide passengers will be allowed entry at every checkpoint.
• Airport operator will have real-time information on Passenger load and resource planning becomes better.
• Airlines will be benefitted by knowing the passenger position in the airport.
• Airport throughput will be enhanced.