India plans to have 100 airports for smaller cities by 2020

By 2020, India's smaller destinations will have 100 airports to handle 30 crore passengers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said on September 21. He added that the first such airport would come up in Kishangarh town in Rajasthan's Ajmer district.

The Prime Minister said this after laying the foundation stone for the development of Kishangarh airport, which is scheduled to be operational by 2016. An ambitious scheme to develop a network of 100 smaller airports in the country is being implemented. The focus earlier was on developing airports in metro cities; now, more than 100 airports will be set up in small towns and cities, Manmohan Singh said. This will enhance air connectivity, he added.

This will enhance air connectivity in the country. Kishangarh airport will be the first project under this scheme, he said.