Aurangabad : In a move which will bring smiles on the faces coming to Aurangabad, steps have been initiated to start a direct air service between Mumbai and Ajanta. A memorandum of understand (MoU) between the district administration and the airline company will be signed in Aurangabad on November 27.
According to the sources of the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) one airline company has shown its keenness in starting the daily helicopter service between Mumbai, the state capital, and Ajanta, the tourism capital of the state. District collector Vikram Kumar has confirmed the development and said that the other party (airline) has sought his appointment for the MoU signing ceremony at his office on November 27 at 10.30 am. However, he expressed inability in sharing details of the air service saying that the proposal is in its infancy therefore it won’t be sensible to give details of the same.
The questions like fare, number of daily trips of the helicopter, its seating capacity and timings are unanswered. The MTDC sources said that these details can be obtained only after district administration and other party draw some concrete conclusions.
It may be noted that tourism season has already begun with thousands of foreign and domestic tourists daily visiting the world monuments around Aurangabad. A helipad has already been developed at Ajanta but is lying unused since last many years.
As on today tourists have to come to Aurangabad first from Mumbai and then have to travel 110 kms distance to Ajanta from Aurangabad by road. The introduction of helicopter service will increase influx of tourists to Ajanta.
– Sudhir Dharmadhikari
A Helipad Is Being Developed At Ajanta But Is Lying Unused
