Six months after APEDA took the issue with Airport Authority of India, it is learnt that Amritsar Airport is set to resume cargo movement to UK/EU after receiving the approval from AAI 2-3 days back. Cargo booking to UK/EU from Amritsar has been stopped since July last year due to suspension of necessary approval by EU.
However, Air India, which is the main airlines in the cargo movement is yet to receive a communication from AAI, sources said adding it will start booking only after receiving a formal communication.
“It is a strange case to reflect how the government system operates, despite claiming ease of doing business. Approximately 400 tonnes worth of goods were exported to UK/EU per month from Amritsar before it was stopped after an X-Ray machine was found faulty and also lack of sufficient staff to manage the movement,” an official source said. Out of this volume, 40-50 per cent was only perishable products, the source added.
There is potential to export perishables farm produce via air-cargo from Amritsar for Europe for which an awareness among the traders and reduction in air freight are two major hurdles for which a concerted effort has to be taken by all agencies involved in coordination with state government, a floriculture exporter said adding he has been sending his consignments via Delhi which is cheaper.
AAI Cargo Logistics and Allied Services Company (AAICLAS), a subsidiary of AAI, received RA3 approval for European Union (EU) Countries and UK for Amritsar and Kolkata air cargo terminals first time in September 2023. The RA3 security certificate is required for direct export to UK and EU countries.
Thanking AAI for installation of the X-ray machine at Amritsar airport, Abhishek Dev, chairman of Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), in October 2024 had requested its intervention to resume cargo movement for EU/UK.
He highlighted the importance of the direct cargo movement from Amritsar to Europe and had said that closure of cargo shipment facilities significantly impacted the export of perishable goods. Many exporters from the region (including from Himachal Pradesh) rely on timely shipments, and the suspension of RA3 caused logistical challenges and economic losses for them. Sources said that though EU had re-approved the RA 3 license much earlier, the necessary approval from AAI to Amritsar airport was received only on April 17.
Official sources said that resuming cargo shipment services from Amritsar airport will directly contribute to the income of farmers in the region as a direct flight to Europe can take Punjab’s fruits and vegetables.
“As in UK, EU markets kinnows of Pakistan and Bangladesh dominate, a reduced freight from Amritsar can make India the largest exporter of the citrus fruit in the region. Similarly, there is potential for export of Himachal apples and several other items such as cauliflower, plum, babycorn from Punjab,” the official said.
Published on April 20, 2025
Six months after APEDA took the issue with Airport Authority of India, it is learnt that Amritsar Airport is set to resume cargo movement to UK/EU after receiving the approval from AAI 2-3 days back. Cargo booking to UK/EU from Amritsar has been stopped since July last year due to suspension of necessary approval by EU.
However, Air India, which is the main airlines in the cargo movement is yet to receive a communication from AAI, sources said adding it will start booking only after receiving a formal communication.
“It is a strange case to reflect how the government system operates, despite claiming ease of doing business. Approximately 400 tonnes worth of goods were exported to UK/EU per month from Amritsar before it was stopped after an X-Ray machine was found faulty and also lack of sufficient staff to manage the movement,” an official source said. Out of this volume, 40-50 per cent was only perishable products, the source added.
There is potential to export perishables farm produce via air-cargo from Amritsar for Europe for which an awareness among the traders and reduction in air freight are two major hurdles for which a concerted effort has to be taken by all agencies involved in coordination with state government, a floriculture exporter said adding he has been sending his consignments via Delhi which is cheaper.
AAI Cargo Logistics and Allied Services Company (AAICLAS), a subsidiary of AAI, received RA3 approval for European Union (EU) Countries and UK for Amritsar and Kolkata air cargo terminals first time in September 2023. The RA3 security certificate is required for direct export to UK and EU countries.
Thanking AAI for installation of the X-ray machine at Amritsar airport, Abhishek Dev, chairman of Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), in October 2024 had requested its intervention to resume cargo movement for EU/UK.
He highlighted the importance of the direct cargo movement from Amritsar to Europe and had said that closure of cargo shipment facilities significantly impacted the export of perishable goods. Many exporters from the region (including from Himachal Pradesh) rely on timely shipments, and the suspension of RA3 caused logistical challenges and economic losses for them. Sources said that though EU had re-approved the RA 3 license much earlier, the necessary approval from AAI to Amritsar airport was received only on April 17.
Official sources said that resuming cargo shipment services from Amritsar airport will directly contribute to the income of farmers in the region as a direct flight to Europe can take Punjab’s fruits and vegetables.
“As in UK, EU markets kinnows of Pakistan and Bangladesh dominate, a reduced freight from Amritsar can make India the largest exporter of the citrus fruit in the region. Similarly, there is potential for export of Himachal apples and several other items such as cauliflower, plum, babycorn from Punjab,” the official said.
Published on April 20, 2025
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It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution
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