The Uttarakhand government’s effort to establish a widespread network of intrastate air services for hill towns faced a major setback on Friday, a day after the launch of the Almora-Dehradun heli service on September 10. The operating agency failed to attract passengers in either direction due to the allegedly high fare charged by Pawan Hans Heli Services.
Officials from the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) reported that only one passenger boarded the helicopter from Almora to Dehradun on Friday, following the launch of the Pawan Hans heli service by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday.
The return flight from Dehradun to Almora had no passengers. UCADA officials explained that the Almora-Dehradun heli service by Pawan Hans did not appeal to the masses mainly due to the high fare.
Notably, Pawan Hans charges around Rs 5,000 per passenger for the 55-minute heli journey between the state capital and the hill town of Almora in Kumaon.
The high fare has become a topic of discussion among the public and political circles, making it the primary reason for the service’s low popularity, despite the fact that it was inaugurated by the Chief Minister with much fanfare and high expectations.
The Dhami government and the ruling BJP hailed the event as a significant achievement and announced more heli services from Dehradun to Yamunotri, Joshiyada, and Gauchar in the Garhwal region.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways, Ajay Tamta, has assured that he will discuss the matter with Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to resolve the high fare issue of the air service.
Union Minister Tamta’s assurance came after a group of local leaders and MLAs from the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress Party met with him, requesting that the Union Minister reduce the cost of the heli ticket between Dehradun and Almora.