'Ensuring safe air operations': Aviation Ministry to increase safety-related posts in DGCA

New Delhi, Oct 25 (IANS) Aiming to enhance its safety oversight function, the Civil Aviation ministry is set to increase the number of safety related posts at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

"In order to strengthen the security of the aviation services, it has been decided to increase the safety related posts in DGCA as ensuring safe air operations is of paramount importance to the Ministry of Civil Aviation," said Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia through the official twitter handle on Tuesday.

Recently, in a letter to the Civil Aviation Minister, Rajya Sabha member Priyanka Chaturvedi, on October 14, highlighted an incident of smoke inside the cabin of a flight and sought necessary action to ensure airlines maintain the highest level of safety standards.

On October 12, SpiceJet's Bombardier Q400 aircraft operating its flight to Hyderabad from Goa had an emergency landing in Hyderabad after smoke filled up its cabin.

The minister in response to Rajya Sabha member's letter had said in a communication, "The observations made by DGCA were communicated immediately to SpiceJet for rectification. DGCA is keeping a close watch on the situation and shall take all appropriate action to avert any untoward incident."

The letter written by the Minister also said, "The Ministry and DGCA place highest importance on the safety of air operations and have taken several proactive measures to enhance the safety of air operations and minimise air occurrences."

"You would appreciate that the surveillance inspections as per the annual surveillance plan for Spicejet has been increased to 47 in 2022-23 as against 33 in 2019-20. Further, overall 155 surveillance inspections were carried out on aircraft in 2019-20. In the year 2022-23, 202 surveillance inspections have been completed so far," the Minister had said in his letter.