Cabinet approves Modified UDAN with ₹28,840 crore outlay for 2026-27 to 2035-36
On 25 March 2026 the Union Cabinet approved the Regional Connectivity Scheme â Modified UDAN for ten years (FY 2026-27 to 2035-36) with an outlay of ₹28,840 crore, including 100 new airports and 200 helipads.
Summary
The Union Cabinet on 25 March 2026 approved the Regional Connectivity Scheme â Modified UDAN for ten years from FY 2026-27 to FY 2035-36 with a total outlay of ₹28,840 crore. It provides ₹12,159 crore to develop 100 airports from unserved airstrips and ₹3,661 crore for 200 modern helipads at ₹15 crore each, both over eight years; O&M support of about ₹2,577 crore for around 441 aerodromes for three years; and viability gap funding of ₹10,043 crore to airlines over 10 years. Two HAL Dhruv helicopters will be bought for Pawan Hans and two HAL Dornier aircraft for Alliance Air. The original UDAN, launched in October 2016, has operationalised 663 routes across 95 airports, heliports and water aerodromes.
Key facts
- Outlay
- ₹28,840 crore, FY 2026-27 to FY 2035-36
- Airports
- 100 from unserved airstrips â ₹12,159 crore
- Helipads
- 200 modern helipads at ₹15 crore each â ₹3,661 crore
- VGF to airlines
- ₹10,043 crore over 10 years
- Aircraft
- 2 HAL Dhruv (Pawan Hans), 2 HAL Dornier (Alliance Air)
- UDAN so far
- Launched Oct 2016; 663 routes, 95 aerodromes, 162.47 lakh passengers
Practice MCQs 3 questions
What is the total outlay of the Modified UDAN scheme approved by the Union Cabinet in March 2026?
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Correct answer: A â ₹28,840 crore
Modified UDAN has a total outlay of ₹28,840 crore for FY 2026-27 to FY 2035-36. ₹12,159 crore is the airport-development component.
Consider the following about the Modified UDAN scheme (2026): 1. It proposes to develop 100 airports from existing unserved airstrips. 2. It proposes 200 modern helipads focused on priority and aspirational districts. 3. It will run for five years from FY 2026-27. Which of the above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: B â 1 and 2 only
The scheme runs for ten years (FY 2026-27 to 2035-36), so statement 3 is wrong; 100 airports and 200 helipads are both components.
Under Modified UDAN, aircraft are to be procured from HAL for which two operators?
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Correct answer: A â Pawan Hans and Alliance Air
Two HAL Dhruv helicopters will go to Pawan Hans and two HAL Dornier aircraft to Alliance Air, under the Atmanirbhar Bharat component.