In a significant move, the Union Government has issued a notification declaring Srinagar International Airport as a “major airport” under the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) Act, 2008. The AERA is now empowered to determine and fix tariff for aeronautical services.

Key Points:

• In a gazette notification, the Ministry of Civil Aviation stated that In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (i) of Section 2 of the AERA Act, 2008, the Union Government hereby declares the Srinagar airport as a major airport.
• After the notification, the AERA, under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, would have the powers to determine tariff for aeronautical services at Srinagar airport.
• Under the AERA, the Centre can designate an airport as a major airport if it has annual passenger traffic of at least 35 lakh. For non-major airports, these tariffs are determined by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), a body under the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
• Recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had inaugurated international flight operations at Srinagar airport by flagging off the first direct international flight between Srinagar and Sharjah.