Dhaka, Ctg to be connected with Agartala through flight routes

Dhaka and Chattogram will be connected with Agartala in India's Tripura state through flight routes, Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb said on Saturday (19 February). 

"Finally, MBB Airport in Agartala is now set to have international flight service with Dhaka & Chittagong. My heartfelt thanks to Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji & Civil Aviation Minister Shri @JM_Scindia ji for this initiative to fulfill the dream of the people of Tripura," Deb tweeted.

Services along the Dhaka-Agartala and Chattogram-Agartala international routes are expected to begin within the next six months, and India's Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) will soon float tenders inviting expressions of interest from private airlines wishing to operate along the routes, reports the Assam Tribune.

The MoCA has included the proposed international routes under the UDAN scheme, Sanjoy Mishra, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to the chief minister said; adding that "MoCA will now float tenders inviting expressions of interest from private airlines who wish to run their services along the two international routes."

The international flight services from Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport are expected to begin within the next six months as the MoCA has already identified the two routes, he further said.

MBB Airport Director Rajiv Kapoor said that the chief minister has taken up with India's Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia the commencement of international flights from the airport at the earliest.

"Right now, I cannot say when the international flight services will kick-start from the airport but we are ready for it. The new terminal building, which was virtually inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 4, has all facilities, from customs to immigration and separate zones for arrival and departure, for handling international passengers," he said.