74 flights under Udan scheme operated for medical supplies

Mumbai, Apr 1 () As many as 74 flights have been operated, carrying a total medical cargo of 37.63 tonnes, till March 31 to various parts of the country under the civil aviation ministry's Lifeline Udan flights initiative, an official release said on Wednesday.

These flights had commenced operations from March 27.

Of the 74 services, 12 flights were operated on March 31 alone, carrying a total medical cargo of 22 tonnes, the ministry said.

Air India operated a total of nine flights while two services were flown by its regional subsidiary Alliance Air and one by the Indian Air Force, the release said.

Air India flights on Mumbai-New Delhi -Guwahati-Mumbai route carried consignments of Meghalaya, Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, and Pune while its services on New Delhi-Hyderabad-Trivandrum-Goa-Delhi route carried consignments of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, ICMR and Goa.

The national carrier also operated services to Port Blair from Chennai and back, it said.

Alliance Air carried medical cargo consignment of the Textiles Ministry through its services on Hyderabad-Bengaluru-Hyderabad route, the ministry said in the release adding the IAF operated a medical cargo service to Port Blair via Sulur from its Hindon airbase.

Air India and IAF collaborated for Ladakh, Dimapur, Imphal, Guwahati and Port Blair flights, it added. IAS SHWMR