The Aviation Ministry's tableau at the Republic Day parade on Wednesday showcased its regional air connectivity scheme Udan and its impact across the country.
Under the UDAN scheme, financial incentives from the Centre, state governments and airport operators are extended to selected airlines to encourage operations from unserved and underserved airports and to keep airfares affordable.
The front part of the aircraft-shaped tableau showcased women pilots depicting women power in India's aviation -- India has amongst the highest number of female pilots globally. The rear portion showed Buddhism symbols and the UDAN motto - Sab Uden, Sab Juden.
The middle portion focused on the Buddha circuit, featuring the Buddha statue in Gaya where he attained enlightenment, the Dhamekh Stupa, Sarnath where he delivered his first sermon (Dharmachakra Parivartan) and the Mahaparinirvana Stupa, Kushinagar, where he attained Mahaparinirvana.
Both sides of the section depicted heritage sites — Humayun tomb in the north, Konark sun temple in east, Hampi temple chariot in south and Ajanta caves in west -- connected through air services.
In October last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Kushinagar international airport. Various airlines operate domestic Udan flights to Kushinagar currently.
A total of 403 Udan routes connect 65 underserved or unserved airports, including heliports and water aerodromes, and over 80 lakh people have benefited from it in seven years.
Twenty-five tableaux of various states, departments and armed forces were part of this year's Republic Day parade.
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Published 26 January 2022, 10:18 IST