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India to promote helicopter tourism: official

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-05-10 22:08

NEW DELHI -- India will try to promote helicopter tourism by building infrastructure and reducing costs to attract foreign tourists, said an Indian official on Sunday.

"The government of India is contemplating serious measures this time to give a huge boost to the helicopter tourism sector hitherto totally neglected. The country has great potential for helicopter tourism but requires just the right impetus to show growth and performance oriented results," Civil Aviation Secretary M. Nambiar said in an interview here.

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The government plans to throw up dedicated helipads and separate helicopter corridors very soon, he said.

"Separate corridors for helicopters and helipads in Delhi and Mumbai are on the priority list of the civil aviation ministry. India has a fleet of 150 civilian helicopters in the country as of now, which is expected to rise to 600 in the next few years," said Nambiar.

In the context of helicopter tourism, the northern states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, India-controlled Kashmir, and the entire northeast region hold scope for a huge demand, he said.

"Operational costs is one issue which needs to be dealt with at the very onset. They are generally very high and deter the tourist to really take it very seriously," he said.

Nambiar has already suggested the Civil Aviation Ministry to make efforts towards facilitating ticket sales in foreign locations.

"Once this is done, it will really enable the international tourists buy tickets in their own home country before start of their India tour," he said.