AERA Amendment Bill, 2021:
The Lok Sabha passed the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA) Amendment Bill, 2021.
- It was first introduced in March 2021 and subsequently referred to a parliamentary standing committee on transport, tourism and culture, which approved it without any changes.
- It seeks to amend the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India Act, 2008.
Major Provisions:
- It proposes to amend the definition of major airport to include a group of airports.
- The 2008 Act designates an airport as a major airport if it has an annual passenger traffic of at least 35 lakh.
- The central government may also designate any airport as a major airport by a notification.
- Tariff: It will allow AERA to regulate tariff and other charges for aeronautical services for not just major airports with annual passenger traffic of more than 35 lakh, but also a group of airports.
- The government will be able to club profitable and non-profitable airports as a combination/package to bidders to make it a viable combination for investment under PPP (Public-Private Partnership) mode.
