Question 1

UDAN strictly acts as a consumer subsidy scheme for cheaper airline tickets.

Accepted Answer

While ticket subsidies (VGF) exist, a massive portion of the Rs 28,840 crore budget (Rs 12,159 crore) is Capital Expenditure dedicated to the physical construction of terminals and runways at 100 unserved airstrips.

Question 2

The scheme will result in the construction of 100 brand new Greenfield airports across India.

Accepted Answer

The scheme strictly focuses on Brownfield development - reviving and upgrading existing, unused airstrips rather than acquiring new land to build Greenfield airports from scratch.

Question 3

Consider the following statements regarding the Modified UDAN (UDAN 2.0) scheme approved in March 2026: 1. The Viability Gap Funding (VGF) support for airlines has been reduced from 5 years to 3 years to ensure faster financial independence of routes. 2. The scheme allocates specific funds for the procurement of indigenous aircraft such as HAL Dornier and HAL Dhruv. 3. It introduces an Operations and Maintenance (O&M) subsidy capped at Rs 3.06 crore per annum to help operators sustain regional aerodromes. How many of the above statements are correct?

Accepted Answer

(b) Only two — Statement 1 is incorrect. A major change in Modified UDAN is that VGF support has been EXTENDED from 3 years to 5 years per route to prevent routes from collapsing once subsidies end. Statements 2 and 3 are correct. The scheme procures HAL aircraft for Alliance Air/Pawan Hans to support Atmanirbhar Bharat and introduces an O&M cap of Rs 3.06 crore per airport to offset recurring losses.

Question 4

Match the funding components of the Modified UDAN scheme (List I) with their primary objectives (List II): List I: A. Viability Gap Funding (VGF), B. Operations & Maintenance (O&M) Support, C. Aerodrome Capex, D. Atmanirbhar Bharat Component. List II: 1. Direct operational subsidy to airlines for flying unprofitable routes, 2. Financial assistance to airport operators for recurring airport running costs, 3. Upgrading existing unserved airstrips into functional airports, 4. Procurement of HAL Dhruv and Dornier aircraft. Select the correct code:

Accepted Answer

(a) A-1, B-2, C-3, D-4 — VGF (A) is the subsidy given directly to airlines to keep tickets affordable (1). O&M support (B) is a new feature given to airport operators to sustain the facilities (2). Capex (C) is the Rs 12,159 crore allocation for physical brownfield upgrades of airstrips (3). The Atmanirbhar component (D) mandates buying domestic HAL aircraft (4).

Question 5

Assertion (A): The Modified UDAN scheme prioritizes the development of existing unserved airstrips over the construction of new Greenfield airports. Reason (R): Greenfield airports require substantially lower capital expenditure and land acquisition efforts compared to upgrading existing airstrips. Select the correct answer:

Accepted Answer

(c) A is correct but R is not correct. — The Assertion is true; Modified UDAN strictly focuses on brownfield development (upgrading 100 existing unserved airstrips). The Reason is false; Greenfield airports (built from scratch on new land) require significantly HIGHER capital expenditure and complex land acquisition, which is exactly why the scheme avoids them to optimize its budget.

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