24 June,2025 10:38 PM IST | Pune | mid-day online correspondent
File pic.
Union Minister K. Rammohan Naidu announced on Tuesday the establishment of a dedicated Helicopter Directorate under the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). This new body aims to provide single-window regulatory oversight and address chopper-specific safety and certification issues.
The Minister for Civil Aviation was delivering a keynote speech at the 7th Helicopter & Small Aircraft Summit in Pune, an event organised by his ministry in collaboration with the Maharashtra government, Pawan Hans, and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
"Robust regional connectivity and logistics has laid the foundation for high growth and high opportunity. We are building a strong framework of regional connectivity through initiatives such as Bharatmala, Sagarmala, National Logistics Policy, National Civil Aviation Policy, the PM Gatishakti Master Plan and Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAAN) schemes for multimodal connectivity," he stated, reported PTI.
"And I would say that these efforts are not only enhancing connectivity but also reshaping our economic destiny," he added.
Naidu further emphasised that for the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, "'viksit aviation' (developed aviation) is set to play a key and pivotal role. For that, we all have to strategically build a future aviation system for the country which promotes helicopters and small aircrafts and makes it a very critical component in our vision," he said.
Announcing the creation of the Helicopter Directorate, the minister said: "The directorate will serve as a singleâÂÂwindow platform for providing oversight in regulation, addressing helicopterâÂÂspecific safety and certification issues, and assisting operators with procedural requirements." He expressed confidence, stating: "And I am so assured that this is going to be a significant step in overcoming the administrative bottlenecks that many of you used to face before."
He also stressed the importance of building a robust safety culture. "Safety of the pilgrims must remain our top priority. There can be no shortcuts, no room for communication errors and no margin for poor decisionâÂÂmaking. We must build a culture of trust, dialogue and discipline which I feel is a shared responsibility between the Centre, the states and the operators," he asserted.
Discussing operations in places like Kedarnath and Chardham, he acknowledged that safety in mountainous terrain can be challenging. "While reviewing some of the incidents, you can see that it is quite challenging in the mountainous terrain," he noted.
However, Naidu firmly added that operational difficulties should never be an excuse. "So, that is something where we have to step up the game, create a much better safety system around the operations that we have today," he concluded, according to PTI.
Naidu shared his vision to promote helicopters and small aircraft as essential components of a futuristic aviation ecosystem.
"I believe the next decade of aviation will be defined not just by large aircraft and mega airports but by modern and inclusive air solutions. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, helicopters and small aircraft are at the heart of our mission to democratise flying," he added.
(With inputs from PTI)
