India approves 4 new air routes to connect northeast states with Bangladesh, Thailand, Myanmar

India has approved four new air routes connecting northeastern states with international destinations under the centre's flagship regional air connectivity scheme, "Udan".

These air routes will connect Assam to Bangladesh and Thailand, Manipur to Myanmar, and Tripura to Bangladesh, reports Times of India. 

The new air routes are expected to be operational in a few weeks. Airfares on these routes — Guwahati-Bangkok, Guwahati-Dhaka, Imphal-Mandalay and Agartala-Chattogram — will be subsidised. 

"These new routes have been in the pipeline since the concerned states made a demand," Anil Kumar Gupta, executive director of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), told The Indian Express.

Gupta said four more routes connecting northeast India to neighbouring countries are further under consideration. He said international routes have to be cleared by the ministries of Home Affairs and External Affairs, too.

Under the UDAN scheme, concerned states subsidise the airfares. 

The Airports Authority of India runs the bid process, selects the airlines, and informs the states about operators interested in offering services on the said routes. 

States then pick the subsidy tab by providing viability gap funding to the lowest bidder. 

In the last seven years, states offering regional air connectivity under the UDAN scheme have spent Rs3,000 crore on subsidies.

The four new routes being considered promise huge tourism and business travel potential between the two cities. 

Of these, Guwahati-Dhaka and Agartala-Chattogram are under 500km and, once operational, may cost travellers under Rs4,000.