Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said that efforts are being made to expand connectivity in all northeastern states. He was addressing a meeting after dedicating Pakyong Airport in Sikkim to the Nation today. Mr Modi said the government is making all efforts to remove regional imbalances.
The Prime Minister also said that the government schemes like UDAN had made travel easy and inexpensive. The Prime Minister said the government has made provision of 400 crore rupees for organic mission in North East region.
Earlier, Mr Modi arrived in the state capital Gangtok yesterday after launching the world’s largest health care programme – Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana from Ranchi in Jharkhand. In a tweet, Prime Minister said, Pakyong airport will improve connectivity and benefit the people of Sikkim.
Pakyong Airport is Sikkim’s first airport and the 100th in the country. Built at a cost of over 600 crore rupees, the airport is situated at an elevation of 4,500 feet above the sea level. About 30 km from Gangtok, the airport brings Sikkim on the aviation map.
Commercial flights will begin from October 4th when Spicejet will start its daily Kolkata-Sikkim flights. Pakyong Airport Director R Manjunatha said, initially the airport will cater to domestic flights only, but later it will also provide international flight services connecting Sikkim with other countries like Paro in Bhutan, Kathmandu in Nepal and Dhaka in Bangladesh.
