Aaditya Thackeray Criticises Centre For Omitting Pune's New Airport In Union Budget: 'Despite MoS Murlidhar Mohol Being From Pune...'

Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray criticised the Centre for not mentioning the construction of a new airport in Pune in the Union Budget, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Thackeray noted that Sitharaman mentioned plans for as many as 120 new airports to be built in the next 10 years under the UDAN scheme. "Patna airport was mentioned, but Pune's new airport, which has been in consistent demand, found no mention, despite the Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol being an MP from Pune," wrote the Worli MLA.

In her speech, the finance minister stated that the UDAN scheme has enabled 1.5 crore middle-class people to achieve their aspirations for faster travel. She said the scheme has connected 88 airports and operationalised 619 routes so far. She emphasised that a new version of the UDAN scheme will be launched to enhance regional connectivity to 120 new destinations and carry four crore passengers over the next 10 years. "Additionally, the scheme will focus on supporting helipads and smaller airports in remote, hilly, and aspirational districts, including the North Eastern region," she added.