Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu chairs Consultative Committee of Civil Aviation in Mysuru

The convening of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Civil Aviation in Mysuru marks a significant departure from the Delhi-centric governance model, representing the first such meeting outside the capital since 2017. This strategic shift under Union Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu aligns with the broader constitutional philosophy of cooperative federalism enshrined in Article 263 of the Constitution, which envisages inter-state and Centre-state coordination through institutional mechanisms. While Consultative Committees are not constitutional bodies but executive constructs under the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961, their regional outreach embodies the spirit of Article 262 and 263 by fostering dialogue between Parliamentarians and the executive on region-specific developmental challenges. The centrepiece of the discussion — the Next Phase of UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) — represents the most ambitious regional connectivity scheme since its launch in 2016 under the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP). The original UDAN scheme, operationalized through a market-based mechanism of Viability Gap Funding (VGF), has already operationalized 479 routes and 75 airports/heliports/waterdromes as of 2024. The unprecedented allocation of ₹28,840 crore for the next phase dwarfs the ₹10,000 crore invested over the previous decade, signaling a paradigm shift from mere airport infrastructure creation to holistic regional economic integration. This aligns with the vision of "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" and directly addresses the constitutional directive under Article 39(b) and (c) of the Directive Principles of State Policy — equitable distribution of material resources and prevention of concentration of wealth. The transformation of the Flying Training Organisation (FTO) ecosystem — from 32 FTOs and 32 flying bases in 2020 to 41 FTOs and 63 flying bases by 2026 — addresses a critical bottleneck in India's aviation growth story. With Indian carriers placing record aircraft orders (exceeding 1,500 aircraft across Air India, IndiGo, Akasa), the demand for pilots is projected to exceed 1,000 annually. The FTO ranking framework, introduced under Minister Naidu's direction, introduces regulatory transparency akin to the NIRF rankings in higher education, empowering aspirants with data-driven choices. This reform resonates with the Skill India Mission and the National Education Policy 2020's emphasis on vocational training and industry-academia linkage. IGRUA's turnaround — achieving 1,765 annual flying hours per aircraft (surpassing the global benchmark of 1,500) and its first budget surplus in over two decades — exemplifies institutional revival through professional management and capacity utilization. As India's premier ab-initio pilot training institute under the Ministry, IGRUA's revival has strategic implications for defence aviation too, given its historical role in supplying pilots to the IAF and Navy. The emphasis on drones and eVTOLs (electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft) positions India at the frontier of the Third Aviation Revolution. The Drone Rules, 2021 and the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for drones and drone components (₹120 crore over three years) create a regulatory and fiscal framework for indigenous manufacturing. This connects to the Atmanirbhar Bharat vision and India's aspirations in the global Urban Air Mobility (UAM) market, projected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2040. Future implications are profound: the Next Phase of UDAN could integrate with the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan for multimodal connectivity; FTO expansion may catalyze aviation universities under the UGC's new guidelines for specialized institutions; and IGRUA's model could be replicated for maintenance training (MRO) — a sector where India currently loses ₹15,000 crore annually to foreign MROs. The Mysuru meeting thus symbolizes a maturing aviation policy architecture — moving from infrastructure provision to ecosystem creation, from centralization to regional empowerment, and from import-dependence to self-reliance in human capital.