New Delhi: Rajya Sabha MP and Gujarat Congress President Shaktisinh Gohil, during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address in Parliament, pointed out the increased User Development Fee (UDF) at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) Airport in Ahmedabad.

Addressing Parliament, Shaktisinh Gohil said, “At Ahmedabad Airport, only ₹85 was charged for foreign or domestic travel when the government owned the airport, and this fee remained unchanged for a long time. However, as soon as Adani took over the airport, in just two years, the airport usage charge increased from ₹85 to ₹450 for domestic travelers and from ₹85 to ₹880 for international travelers. This is an open robbery.”

It is noteworthy that the Union Government’s reply to a question raised by Shaktisinh Gohil during the Winter Session of Parliament in 2024 showed that in three years, the User Development Fee (UDF) at SVPI Airport had risen by over 400% for domestic passengers and over 935% for international passengers.

According to the government’s reply, the User Development Fee (UDF) per passenger was ₹85 from 2020 to January 31, 2023. After that, it increased by ₹165 for domestic passengers and ₹550 for international passengers. In 2023-24, the UDF remained unchanged at ₹250 for domestic and ₹550 for international travelers. However, in FY 2024-25, it was increased again, and currently, ₹450 is charged for domestic travelers and ₹880 for international travelers.

Meanwhile, the government at that time had also stated, “Since Government does not fund Airport Development, UDF enables the airport operator to fund his expenses for providing airport services. Thus, UDF ensures seamless operations for the passenger convenience by creating/upgrading the passenger amenities and services, particularly in the terminal building. The amenities provided by the Airport Operator are majorly used by the passengers and thus levying UDF is an appropriate way of ensuring contribution directly from the passenger/user utilising the services. The Passenger Service Fees/UDF is an acceptable principle and levied at most of the airports globally on the users availing the benefit of the services at the airport.” DeshGujarat