Agra: Keeping in mind the possible surge of visitors and devotees after the inauguration of the Ram temple, the Uttar Pradesh government will connect Ayodhya with six districts under the ‘Braj Air Safari’ helicopter service.
On 25 December, marking the birth anniversary of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the helicopter service began connecting Bateshwar in Agra to Govardhan in Mathura.
UP principal secretary, tourism, Mukesh Meshram told ThePrint Thursday that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will formally launch the helicopter service this week at Lucknow.
For now, the tourism department has chosen six districts — Agra, Mathura, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Lucknow, and Prayagraj — from where helicopters will take off for Ayodhya. In the near future, the state could extend the service from other districts, depending on the demand.
He said that the highest tariff will be Rs 35,399 from Agra and Mathura to Ayodhya. The Agra-Ayodhya flight of approximately 440 km is expected to take about 135 minutes.
The tourism department has already inked a 30-year agreement with Rajas Aerosports Pvt. Ltd. for the air service, the senior bureaucrat said, adding that the copters will take off from the heliports constructed on the Agra-Lucknow expressway in Agra and Goverdhan in Mathura.
Five devotees, not exceeding the limit of 400 kg, can travel at a time. They will be allowed to carry up to 5 kg of luggage each.
The Agra heliport was constructed on 2 acre of land at the cost of Rs 5 crore, while the one at Govardhan is significantly larger at 11 acre.
Apart from Agra and Mathura, the helicopters will take devotees from Gorakhpur, which is about 126 km from Ayodhya, at a tariff of Rs 11,327. The one-way flight will take about 40 minutes. From Lucknow, Varanasi, and Prayagraj, the tariff will be Rs 14,159. Helipads are already functional in all these districts, and the flight will take between 40 and 55 minutes.
The tourism department has also decided to offer an aerial view of Ayodhya and Ram Temple via a 15-minute helicopter ride at a tariff of Rs 3,539.
Notably, the Braj Air Safari is the first inter-district helicopter service launched in Uttar Pradesh. Previously, a helicopter service was available for Govardhan, but it only flew within the district for pilgrims who wanted to do a ‘parikrama’ (circumambulation) of the Govardhan hillock which is linked with the lore of Krishna.
However, the Agra-Mathura helicopter service is yet to become operational due to bad weather.
Hukum Singh Gujjar, Project Manager at the company, told ThePrint that Rajas Aerosports Pvt. Ltd. is shelling out Rs. 5 lakh per day for leasing the helicopter. But, the helicopter is parked in the hangar, unable to fly due to dense fog.
He added that considering the bad weather in the region, the service will probably become operational in February.
Agra Tourist Welfare Chamber president Prahalad Agarwal said that the helicopter service was expected to offer great potential for an increase in religious tourism between the Braj region and Ayodhya, with pilgrims seeking to visit the lands of Lord Krishna and Lord Ram availing this service.
“The low passenger-carrying capacity of the helicopter, combined with the high price tag, will prove to be a major deterrent for tourists, and only very well-off passengers will opt for this service, merely for its novelty value,” he said.
Rohit Kumar Kain, chief executive at Nirvana Tours India, a major travel operator in Agra, said that the helicopter service was a great idea but they have received no formal communication from either the tourism department about its launch. The operator company has also not received an inquiry about tickets for the service, he said.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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