Jyotiraditya M. Scindia Launches National Air Sports Policy The Union minister said the policy will generate over INR 8,000 crore annual revenue and 100,000 direct jobs
By Teena Jose
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Civil aviaton minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia on Wednesday launched the National Air Sport Policy 2022 (NASP 2022). The policy lays out the vision of making India one of the top sports nations by 2030 by providing a safe, affordable, accessible, enjoyable and sustainable air sports ecosystem in the country.
"It is time for India to take its rightful place and become a global capital of air sports. We want to create an environment of adventure, thrill and sports in the country. For this, we will leverage the energy of our youth below the age of 35 which accounts to 70 per cent of India's population which is larger than the total population of Europe and three times that of USA," said Scindia.
According to a statement, the policy will serve to attract air sports enthusiasts from all over the world, especially those who live in areas where harsh winters prevent them from participating. He said, "From a small market size of around 5,000 odd air sports practitioners creating around INR 80 to 100 crore annual revenue in India, I feel we can target over INR 8,000-10,000 crore annual revenue and generate over 100,000 direct jobs. The economic multiplier benefits in terms of travel, tourism, support services and local infrastructure development will be over three times."
NASP 2022
Air sports, as the name suggests, encompasses various sports activities involving the medium of air. These includes sports such as air-racing, aerobatics, aeromodelling, hang gliding, paragliding, paramotoring and skydiving, etc. NASP 2022 has been drafted based on the inputs received from policy makers, air sports practitioners and public. Also, it will ensure the establishment of good quality of infrastructure, equipment, instructors and services.
Under the new policy, there will be a four-tier governance structure for air sports in India: Air Sports Federation of India (ASFI) as the apex body, national associations for individual air sports, regional or state and Union territory level units, and district-level air sports associations.