Cabinet to move soon on setting up Civil Aviation Authority
22 Mar 2011
The process of setting up a Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), an administratively and financially autonomous body, which will regulate all civil aviation safety issues in India, is now in the final stages and a cabinet note on it is likely to be soon formalised.
The CAA may be tasked with keeping a tab on the entire range of civil aviation activities -from supervising air traffic services and licensing to auditing the financial fitness of airlines.
According to the director general of civil aviation, EK Bharat Bhushan, a cabinet note is being prepared based on all the facts prepared by his organisation.
Government will have to bring in appropriate legislation to establish the CAA.
According to the DGCA, the CAA would have a lot of financial, administrative and procedural independence and will also be able to recruit professionals directly instead of having it routed through the Union Public Service Commission as is the current practice.
A feasibility study to set up such an authority was commissioned in October 2009, in cooperation with UN body, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) to improve discharge of safety oversight functions.
