Haryana to set up aviation centre

CHANDIGARH - The Haryana government and the Aero Club of India will set up a national-level aero sports centre in the state Jan 31, an official said Saturday.

The official said the centre, to be named after former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, has been proposed to be set up at the Narnaul airfield, on the Delhi-Jaipur highway about 125 km from New Delhi.

A meeting to finalize plans for this centre was held Friday in New Delhi between Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Aero Club of India president and Congress MP Satish Sharma.

Hooda said it would be the first national centre of excellence for the promotion of aviation activities. It will not only benefit the youth of Haryana but also serve Delhi and the national capital region (NCR).

The launch ceremony would include activities like para-sailing, parachute jumping, sky diving and hot air ballooning.

Sharma said the ambit of activities of the centre would be widened later to cover power-gliding, motor-gliding, aerobatics and aero modelling.