The civil aviation industry is keenly waiting for Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s Budget speech on Saturday with hopes that he would come up with bold measures, including a viable tax structure on airport infrastructure and reduction of taxes on jet fuel.
The industry expects that the pro-aviation sector measures would also have a spiral effect in the hotel and travel industry.
Phee Teik Yeoh, the CEO of Vistara, said a viable tax structure on airport infrastructure and maintenance and repair and operations sector of aviation along with reduced state taxes on jet fuel would boost the government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative.
“There is a hope that the Budget will be an extension of Modi’s vision of enabling the people and making India a global tourism and investment destination. As for the aviation sector, the recent slashing of ATF prices has been quite a relief for the industry and we are now looking for definitive steps being taken to further incentivise the sector and enhance its global competitiveness,” he said.
According to L V S Rajasekhar, Managing Director of Vijayawada-based Air Costa, the government should consider viability gap funding to promote regional airlines. He told Deccan Herald that the airline industry to be given infrastructure sector status to enable access to funds with lower rate of interest through external commercial borrowings.
“The government should waive off the condition that companies having interest in airlines cannot bid for the PPP mode of development of airport,” Vivek Choudhary, Chief Financial Officer of Air Costa, said.
Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and CEO-India of MakeMyTrip, said that while the prospects for the travel and tourism industry in India are very bright, the industry still faces many challenges.
Aviation think-tank Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) said there are strong expectations that the budget would introduce “some bold measures” aimed at setting a long-term direction for India’s economic growth story.