New Delhi, (NNN-Bernama) : Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday launched an ambitious scheme to help people fly cheaply to small towns across the country, China’s Xinhua news agency reported.

The scheme has been named UDAN – an acronym for “Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik” meaning “the common man flies” – and it connects small towns with big cities through cheap flights under India’s first national aviation policy launched in June last year.

“Earlier aviation was considered to be the domain of a select few. That has changed now. We had the opportunity to frame a civil aviation policy, which caters to aspirations of the people of India,” Modi said.

“Tier-2 & Tier-3 cities are becoming growth engines. If aviation connectivity is enhanced in these places, it will be beneficial,” he added.

Earlier announcing the launch in a series of tweets, the Prime Minister’s Office said that the airfare for a one-hour journey of 500 kms has been capped at 2,500 Indian rupees (US$35), which will be an all-inclusive charge.

Under the scheme, five companies will operate flight services on 128 routes that will connect 70 airports across the country. The operators will include private airlines SpiceJet, Air Deccan, Turbo Megha, Air Odisha and state-owned Air India’s subsidiary Airline Allied Services.

Of the 44 airports, the Indian government had identified 22 which were flight-ready last year. The list included Bhavnagar in the west, Bhatinda in the east, Gwalior in the center, Durgapur in the east and Jaisalmer in the west.