India to build 100 new airports by 2036

India plans to construct 100 new airports over the next decade, aiming to increase the total number of airports from 166 to 266 by 2036. Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu announced that the initiative will involve an investment of approximately Rs 30,000 crore.

The expansion is driven by the modified UDAN (Regional Connectivity Scheme), which seeks to enhance air travel access in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, Himalayan regions, and island territories such as Lakshadweep and the Andaman Islands.

As part of a broader strategy to establish India as a global aviation hub, the government is implementing a ‘hub and spoke’ operational model. This model, recently inaugurated at Ahmedabad airport, is designed to provide seamless connectivity for domestic passengers to international destinations, following similar implementations in Varanasi and Amritsar.