Civil Aviation Minister K Ramamohan Naidu said on Friday that the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at GIFT City has unlocked a USD 5 billion opportunity every year for India’s aviation sector by simplifying aircraft leasing processes.
Located in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, GIFT City has been developed as a special economic zone and offers major tax incentives to businesses. Airlines leasing aircraft through lessors registered in GIFT City receive tax exemptions, and these lessors are not required to seek prior approval for importing or leasing aircraft. This makes leasing procedures faster and more affordable.
“We are seeing the leasing cost in the country reduce up to 10 to 15 percent after setting up the GIFT City, which is ultimately going to benefit more aircraft and help in expanding our aircraft fleet,” Naidu said at the Western Region Ministers’ Conference of Aviation.
He added, “With 80 percent of our commercial fleet currently on lease, GIFT City unlocks a USD 5 billion opportunity for the entire Indian aviation industry.”
The conference was attended by representatives from Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa, and Union Territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, along with senior officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, DGCA, Airports Authority of India, and other key stakeholders.
Naidu also emphasised that aviation today is more than just a means of transport. “It is a driver of transformation, with airports emerging as the new-age nucleus of economic activity.”
Talking about the government’s long-term vision, he said, “Viksit Bharat 2047 is a target, a goal and a dream for all these 140 billion people collectively where we unify all our energies into building and developing India by the year 2047.”
He further highlighted how new airports lead to growth by improving local infrastructure such as roads, metro lines, and highways. “Hotels, real estate, housing projects, industrial clusters, tourism, agricultural productivity through cargo—everything gets a boost. That is the power civil aviation has today,” he added.
Also read: Viksit Workforce for a Viksit Bharat
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