New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated India’s first-ever seaplane service connecting Statue of Unity in Kevadia with Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad.
After the inauguration, PM Modi boarded the flight from Kevadia on the second and last day of his Gujarat visit and from there, he reached the Sabarmati riverfront.
The seaplane service covers the distance of two hundred kilometers between Kevadia and Sabarmati which will be covered in just 45 minutes by the seaplane.
This service is expected to boost travel and tourism and provide last-mile connectivity.
“Seaplanes have the ability to land and take-off from water thus offering access to areas that do not have landing strips or runways,” Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
It can also help in connecting the geographies and regions that have challenges owing to its topography and bring the remotest parts of India into the mainstream aviation network without the high cost of building airports and runways.
These smaller fixed wing airplanes can land on water bodies like lakes, backwaters and dams, gravel and grass, thus offering easy access to numerous tourist spots as well, PMO said.
Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister during his address on Sardar Vallabhai Patel’s 145th birth anniversary said, “Today, seaplane service from Sardar Sarovar to Sabarmati riverfront is also going to be launched.”
“The countrymen will now also have an option of seaplane service. All these efforts are going to give a big boost to tourism in this area,” he added.
-RJV
