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In its first such decision, airports' regulator Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) has approved the 'ad-hoc' levy of user development fee (UDF) of Rs 775 on international passengers departing from the state-owned Trivandrum International Airport (TIA). The Trivandrum airport has become the sixth airport in the country to levy a user charge to be collected from the passengers.In an order issued on Wednesday, the authority has decided to levy the user charge for a period of ten years subject to review later. The levy will kick in from the date of commissioning of the New International Terminal Building at the airport. "No UDF would be leviable on the domestic passengers. This ad-hoc determination would be reviewed at the stage of tariff determination for the first cycle and thereafter at such intervals as the Authority may determine from time to time," AERA ordered. The government had earlier allowed Bangalore, Hyderabad and Jaipur International airports to collect UDF from the departing passengers beginning 2008. Delhi and Mumbai International airports commenced levying development fee last year to bridge the capital deficit.State-owned Airports Authority of India (AAI) that operates TIA had sought the authority's approval to begin levying the airport tax or UDF, as "the project is not financially viable without levy of UDF and levy is proposed to bridge the viability gap." The project cost increased from government approved Rs 245 crore to an estimated Rs 289 crore, as per AAI's latest estimates. It had demanded that the levy be coincided with the opening of the new international terminal building at the airport.AAI had proposed levy for all passengers departing from the airport for a period of either 10 or 15 years. It had accordingly proposed two different sets of levy, Rs 550 and Rs 1,020 per domestic and international passenger for 10 years or Rs 280 and Rs 715 per departing domestic and international passenger for a period of 15 years. AAI had made projections of UDF charges by considering revenues from aeronautical side together with 30 per cent revenues from non-aeronautical side such as retail and commercial spaces.Airlines have been opposing rising user charges, contending that they add to cost of flying. Air India said that there should be a differential UDF for low-cost carriers such as Air India Express, and had warned that the international passenger may shift from the Trivandrum airport to the nearby Kochi airport.
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