CM promises steps to increase Singapore-Madurai flights

MADURAI: Singapore home affairs minister K Shanmugam on Thursday requested chief minister M K Stalin to take necessary steps to increase the number of direct flights between Madurai and Singapore and allow Singapore-based carriers to operate from Madurai.

Stalin, who is on an official visit to Singapore, assured Shanmugam that he will request the central government to take steps to facilitate better connectivity from Madurai.
For years, trade bodies and airport enthusiasts in Madurai have been blaming the Centre’s lack of will for not allowing more international carriers to operate from Madurai.
As the airport is not added as a point of call in the Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA), international carriers cannot operate from here. This means many passengers from Madurai fly abroad from other cities including neighbouring Trichy, Chennai, Bengaluru and Thiruvananthapuram.
Civil aviation minister V K Singh had clarified in Parliament in December last year that Government of India had decided not to include any non-metro airport as a point of call under BASA for foreign carriers due to significant imbalance in the number of points of call in favour of foreign carriers.
He said Madurai is available as a point of call to carriers from Sri Lanka and more than 80 countries for scheduled cargo services.
TN Chamber of Commerce and Industry president N Jegatheesan said despite persistent requests from trade bodies, the central government has not been adding Madurai as a point of call to Singapore citing various reasons including unavailability of night operation. He said the number of Indian carriers operating direct flights from Madurai to Singapore has also come down from seven to three a week after the covid lockdown.
“Many passengers from Madurai are taking a flight from Trichy due to fewer direct flights to Singapore from Madurai,” said Jegatheesan.
The trade body is also upset that night operations announced in April had not fully materialized as no flights are operating after 8.45pm from Madurai.
This has also kept off more international carriers from Madurai, its members say. T E Yogesh, an airport enthusiast, said this is the first time the Singapore government itself has called for providing more direct flights and allowing its carriers to operate from Madurai. “The state government now has an opportunity to convince the central government about the need to add Madurai as a point of call in BASA agreement. It will help Madurai realise its tourism potential too,” he added.