Kolkata: The number of airports will rise at the average rate of 10 a year for the next 10 years, Union civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu has said.
As a result, he total number airport on Indian soil which stands at 166 now will rise to 266 by 2036. The major under the wings of this initiative is the Centre’s regional connectivity scheme UDAN. He said this at an event launching the country’s third ‘hub & spoke’ operations from Ahmedabad airport. “While there were 74 airports in 2014, today we can proudly say that India’s map features 166 airports. Going from 74 to 166 set a record for the country. Over the last 12 years, we completed work on a new airport or a new terminal roughly every 40 days,” Naidu said.
Modified UDAN
In March 2026, the Union cabinet approved the launch of the Regional Connectivity Scheme, or modified UDAN, for a period of 10 years from . It has a total allocation of Rs 28,840 crore. “This 12-year journey was merely the beginning for the Ministry of Civil Aviation. We have expanded upon the revolutionary changes brought to the air travel sector by the ‘UDAN’ scheme over the past decade. Looking ahead, we plan to spend approximately Rs 30,000 crore over the next 10 years to build 100 new airports,” the minister said.
‘Hub & spoke’ operations from Ahmedabad airport
The ‘hub & spoke’ operations from Ahmedabad airport, which the minister inaugurated, is set to connect passengers seamlessly to international destinations. The broad objective is to turn India into a global aviation hub by providing seamless international connectivity to passengers from across the country through Indian hub airports.
“Aspirations have grown; people now want international flights to start from existing airports and desire better domestic connectivity from airports that already handle international traffic. By integrating these needs, we initiated the hub-and-spoke model,” said Naidu, explaining the hub and spoke model.
Demand from smaller cities
The demand for improved air transportation is coming from smaller cities, said the minister. “And this demand is not limited to major cities — it comes from tier-2 and tier-3 cities, Himalayan regions, remote areas, and islands like Lakshadweep and Andaman. Everywhere, people are asking when will an airport be constructed in their area. This is the voice of modern India. We are listening to it, formulating policies accordingly, and moving forward,” he said.
The real challenge of an expanding airport network is how effectively these airports are connected, both domestically and internationally, pointed out Naidu.
