Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia spoke to civil aviation ministers of states and union territories who are pushing for reduction in Value Added Tax (VAT) on jet fuel to help increase air traffic.
“With the current tax structure on ATF (Aviation Turbine Fuel)… you cannot have a strong civil aviation sector. I am very clear on that,” said the Union minister of a curtain-raiser event about Wings India. Inaugurating, he said, 2022 which is Asia’s biggest event on civil aviation.
Earlier, Scindia said that seven states and union territories have reduced their VAT on ATF and he expects other states to follow suit.
Scindia also said that at present there is a requirement of 9,500 pilots and more than 40% of the pilots go abroad for training. “Forex is the expense. The training cost of a pilot is approx. 1.5-2 crores. We have to do flight/pilot training here.”
While the civil aviation industry was significantly affected during the pandemic, Scindia said on the occasion that the Indian civil aviation industry has witnessed strong growth over the years and contributes significantly to the country’s economic growth. It is bringing people from all over the world to discover the huge business and tourism opportunities in India.
The Indian aviation industry has faced many challenges to become one of the most lucrative aviation markets in the world. “India today handles the third largest domestic traffic after the United States and China. We all know that in this densely globalized economy, air transport is a key element in the country’s transportation infrastructure and an important factor in the country’s economic development. plays a role,” Scindia said.
(with inputs from ANI)
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