The Gujarat government’s Civil Aviation Department is set to launch aerosports activities at five airstrips in the state. However, questions are being raised over the ability of the department to introduce such activities after it embarrassingly had to stall the seaplane plane service in 2021.

The department has submitted a proposal to initiate aero sports activities at the airstrips in Mandvi, Rajpipla, Saputara, Dwarka, and Dhordo.

The tender issued for this work includes ten various activities such as towing hang gliding, foot-launched powered hang glider (FLPHG), paramotoring, paragliding, hot air ballooning, microlight flying, aerobatic display, RC aircraft hang gliding, skydiving, and Nano, micro, and small drone flying.

However, a glance at the grim reality of the state paints a pitiful picture. The seaplane services inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 31, 2020, made trips from Ahmedabad’s Sabarmati Riverfront to the Statue of Unity, located in Kevadia, Narmada.

This initiative came crashing down in merely six months’ time, as the service had to be shut down in April 2021.

In the three and a half years which followed, the government made three attempts to reinitiate the seaplane service. However, no agency came forward to rescue the nosediving project.

Thus, the civil aviation department, also accused of being heavily short-staffed, has raised many eyebrows by proposing these aero sports activities.

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