Rajya Sabha approves AERA Bill to develop smaller airports

The Rajya Sabha has approved the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (Amendment) Bill 2021. The bill aims to encourage the development of smaller airports by grouping them to make them more appealing to investors and also promises to speed up the development of smaller airports as per the UDAN regional air connectivity scheme by extending air connectivity to more remote areas. The Bill aims to support the government's plan to privatise smaller airports as part of its asset monetisation programme.