Halted due to Covid, Shatabdi yet to resume service from Bathinda

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Bathinda, March 13

Residents are upset as flights and Shatabdi Express from Bathinda to New Delhi have been lying defunct ever since the Covid outbreak, forcing them to travel in their own vehicles.

Newly elected MLA Jagroop Singh Gill said: “I will write a letter to the authorities concerned and will ask them to restart these facilities for the people of the region. Both the facilities were getting a good response earlier.”

As per information, there is no indication towards the resumption of flights from the Bathinda Airport in the summer schedule, which is starting from March 29.

As per Airports Authority of India, the authorities wrote to two private players to consider running the Delhi-Bathinda flight operations, but there has been no response from any quarter. Flights from the Bathinda Airport were grounded after the lockdown was imposed due to the Covid outbreak in March 2020.

Bathinda is the only district in southern Punjab with air connectivity. The sole service provider, Alliance Air, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Air India, chose not to extend operations after its contract ended two years back.

Before the suspension of service, the airport was operating 70-seater ATR-72 flights to and from Jammu five days a week and to Delhi thrice a week. Services on the Delhi route were discontinued from November 28, 2020, and flights to Jammu on October 27, 2019.

The airport, a pet project of the Badals, was constructed at Virk Kalan village, about 30 km from Bathinda city, in October 2012, but was made operational in December 2016.

The state government had acquired 42 acres and handed it over to the AAI, which spent Rs 25 crore for constructing a civil enclave adjoining Bhisiana Air Force station. While the airport building is under the AAI control, the runway, air traffic and emergency services is the domain of the IAF.

Meanwhile, Shikhar Goyal, a trader, said the Centre must restart the flights and Shatabdi Express to New Delhi from here as this would increase the pace of the development in the region and would benefit the residents as travel would be comfortable and less time consuming.

Holi special train to Varanasi chugs off

Sriganganagar: A special Holi train to Varanasi (UP) was flagged off by former Union Minister Nihal Chand Meghwal from the Sriganganagar railway station on Sunday. Station Superintendent Dinesh Kumar Tyagi said on the first day, the train left with almost 100% passenger load. It is expected this train will be regularised soon. The train will make three trips between Sriganganagar-Varanasi in view of the Holi festival. It will have brief stoppages on the way. oc