Bhubaneswar: Flight services between Odisha capital and Amarda in Mayurbhanj district are likely to commence soon as the Central Government has identified the Amarda Road airstrip for operation of RCS flights under the UDAN scheme, revealed a letter sent by Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia to Balasore MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi.

Moreover, Rs 45 crore has been sanctioned in this regard, the Union Minister said in the letter while replying to MP Sarangi's previous letter dated 2nd August 2023 regarding operationalization of Amarda Road airstrip.

"Amarda Road airstrip is available in the list of unserved airports in UDAN Document. Under UDAN 4.2, it has been identified for development for the operation of RCS flights. The route Bhubaneswar-Amarda-Bhubaneswar has been awarded to Air Taxi for the operations," Scindia wrote in the letter.

"An amount of INR 45 Crores has been sanctioned for the development of the Amarda airstrip under the UDAN scheme. It has been informed by the Government of Odisha that development work at the airstrip will be taken up once the land is handed over by the Ministry of Defence to the State. On the readiness of the Airport, the Selected Airline Operator may start RCS flight operations from/ to Amarda," he added.