The increase in air traffic, rail traffic, freight and port cargo traffic in July shows the resilience of the Indian economy

New Delhi [India]September 1 (ANI): Domestic air traffic in India registered a 7 percent increase in July 2024 compared to the same period last year, reaching 130 million passengers, according to data from the Director General of Civil Aviation.

The data indicated that this growth follows a period of slower expansion over the previous nine months, primarily due to increased fares and limited capacity additions resulting from the grounding of several aircraft.

However, since April 2024, domestic air traffic growth has regained momentum. Despite this recovery, air traffic in July 2024 was particularly affected by a higher number of flight rebookings due to adverse weather conditions and IT-related issues, which led to disruptions in air traffic.

In addition to the development in air traffic, the country also recorded growth in freight handling and rail freight transport.

The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, India’s major government ports, handled a total of 70.1 million tonnes (MMT) of cargo in July 2024, an increase of 7 percent over the previous year. This increase in cargo handling indicates a positive trend in the country’s trade and logistics sectors.

Furthermore, according to the Ministry of Railways, it was highlighted that the Indian Railways recorded a total freight volume of 129.6 million tonnes in July 2024, representing a year-on-year growth of 4.7 per cent.

According to experts, the growth in freight traffic was partly due to the commissioning of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) and the partial completion of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC).

They also pointed out that these two dedicated freight corridors are now responsible for handling about 10 percent of the total freight traffic on the Indian railway network, which will significantly reduce the turnaround time of freight trains and increase the overall efficiency of the rail freight system. (ANI)