Anupam Kumar, Patna. The export of litchi has not started till now due to the closure of X-ray of airport cargo. However, from the first week of May it has been starting in the past years. This year the Bureau of Civil Aviation has decided under the new security standards that the airlines will no longer screen all the goods sent by air cargo with their own X-ray scanners, but for this the airport authority itself will set up the X-ray scanning facility. Along with this, the X-ray scanners of all the five airlines working at Patna airport were discontinued from January 1 this year, while the airport authority could not install its own X-ray scanner as an alternative. Due to this, till now the export of litchi or mango has not started from Patna airport, whereas every day for the last two weeks, vendors exporting litchi are coming to Patna airport for this and returning after enquiry.
X-ray screening allowed to Indigo
In order to save the export of fruits from being disrupted, the Airport Authority has decided to allow X-ray screening to different airlines at 12 such airports in the country, where the Airport Authority itself has not yet established its own X-ray facility. . Under this, it has been decided to give this permission to Indigo at Patna airport. It will also carry out X-ray scanning and security check of fruits like mango and litchi sent by it as well as other four airlines flying from Patna and will be exported only after passing it. IndiGo is likely to start its facility from next week.
Possibility of exporting 8 to 10 tons of litchi and half a ton of mangoes every day
If we look at the statistics of the years before Corona, then every day in the months of May and June, eight to 10 tonnes of litchi and about half a tonne of mangoes have been exported from Patna. Due to the maximum number of flights of Indigo from Patna, Litchi has also been the biggest air career from here and it has been sent mostly to Pune, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi by its planes. At the same time, it is sent to Delhi and Mumbai by Air India flights. It has also been sent by SpiceJet, Go Air and Vistara flights. In these, except Go Air, other four airlines are still ready to send them out of Patna. Only the facility of X-ray scanning and security clearance is awaited to start again.
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