High-flying campaigners to give Rs 100 cr biz to private operators
Slowdown may have hit the aviation sector as a whole, but fortunes of a lucky few are just about to take off.
By Bharti Jain, ET Bureau |
NEW DELHI: Slowdown may have hit the aviation sector as a whole, but fortunes of a lucky few are just about to take off. Helicopter operators and companies chartering out small aircraft are in for a Rs 100-crore poll bonanza as politicians cutting across parties look to the skies in their quest to criss-cross the country during the 45-odd days in April-May when India dons the election gear.
Their wings are in great demand not only from major national parties like the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party but also from small players like the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) of Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan. An ideal travel mode, the air carriers help politicians cover maximum distance and connect with maximum number of voters in minimum time.
Besides, it���s the preferred mode of travel for their star campaigners because of security threat perceptions.
Political parties may cumulatively hire as many as 60 choppers and small aircraft on any given day during the month-long campaigning. While BJP and the Congress are expected to have at least 15 choppers each doing the rounds everyday, the Samajwadi Party may hire at least six to ferry its star campaigners.
The Bahujan Samaj Party will not be too far behind, with at least 2-3 helicopters/small aircraft on the stand-by to take party supremo and UP chief minister Mayawati and others across the heartland and newer pockets of support.
Other players like TDP, Shiv Sena, DMK, ADMK, RJD, JD(U), NCP, Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi���s Prajarajyam Party and LJP, will contribute their bit to the aviation business, hiring 1-2 helicopters for each day of campaigning.
The multi-phased polls will ensure that each chopper is engaged in campaigning for a minimum of 45 days, bringing in more than Rs 100 crore to the sector.
Though the ceiling for poll expenditure by a candidate is Rs 15 lakh, the Election Commission has exempted chopper bills from this limit. Ahead of each election, a registered party is required to give a list of big leaders and star campaigners whose chopper expenses will be accounted for by the party.
While the Congress list has the Gandhi family on top, the BJP flyers this time would include, apart from prime ministerial candidate L K Advani, leaders like Narendra Modi, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj and star attractions like Navjot Singh Sidhu, Shatrughan Sinha and ���Dreamgirl��� Hema Malini.
Their wings are in great demand not only from major national parties like the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party but also from small players like the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) of Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan. An ideal travel mode, the air carriers help politicians cover maximum distance and connect with maximum number of voters in minimum time.
Besides, it���s the preferred mode of travel for their star campaigners because of security threat perceptions.
Political parties may cumulatively hire as many as 60 choppers and small aircraft on any given day during the month-long campaigning. While BJP and the Congress are expected to have at least 15 choppers each doing the rounds everyday, the Samajwadi Party may hire at least six to ferry its star campaigners.
The Bahujan Samaj Party will not be too far behind, with at least 2-3 helicopters/small aircraft on the stand-by to take party supremo and UP chief minister Mayawati and others across the heartland and newer pockets of support.
Other players like TDP, Shiv Sena, DMK, ADMK, RJD, JD(U), NCP, Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi���s Prajarajyam Party and LJP, will contribute their bit to the aviation business, hiring 1-2 helicopters for each day of campaigning.
ADVERTISEMENT
The cost of an aircraft ranges between 1.10 lakh to 1.50 lakh per hour, and political parties, on an average, log three hours of flying time on any given day. So hiring a chopper will cost nearly Rs 4 lakh on an average, working out to a Rs 2.40-crore daily turnover for the aviation business.The multi-phased polls will ensure that each chopper is engaged in campaigning for a minimum of 45 days, bringing in more than Rs 100 crore to the sector.
Though the ceiling for poll expenditure by a candidate is Rs 15 lakh, the Election Commission has exempted chopper bills from this limit. Ahead of each election, a registered party is required to give a list of big leaders and star campaigners whose chopper expenses will be accounted for by the party.
While the Congress list has the Gandhi family on top, the BJP flyers this time would include, apart from prime ministerial candidate L K Advani, leaders like Narendra Modi, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj and star attractions like Navjot Singh Sidhu, Shatrughan Sinha and ���Dreamgirl��� Hema Malini.
ADVERTISEMENT
So lucrative is the aviation business in the times of polls that it has seen agents, who were earlier booking chartered flights for parties, stepping in for a bigger share of the pie by operating flights themselves. Of course, politicians are not complaining. A smooth takeoff on the campaign trail, after all, will help land them in power.Download
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
