The government has approved indicative SAF blending targets of 1% by 2027, 2% by 2028 and 5% by 2030 for international flights, with Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu directing all stakeholders to expedite preparations for Sustainable Aviation Fuel adoption. According to the latest developments, the minister chaired a high-level meeting on compliance with ICAO's Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), reviewing progress on SAF production, certification, supply chain development and the proposed blending roadmap. The meeting was attended by senior officials from civil aviation, petroleum and natural gas, environment ministries, along with representatives from DGCA, AAI, BIS, BEE, oil marketing companies, airlines and airport operators. Naidu emphasized that SAF is not merely a compliance requirement but a strategic national opportunity, with multiple stakeholders including farmers standing to gain from the SAF value chain.
The Odisha government has unveiled an ambitious aviation roadmap to transform the state's air connectivity from a transport utility into a key engine of economic growth. According to the draft Odisha Civil Aviation Policy 2026, the state plans to double the number of operational airports from five to 10 by 2028-29, with two new greenfield international airports at Puri and Paradip to handle an estimated 10 million passengers and 1.5 million tonnes of cargo annually. The state currently operates one international airport at Bhubaneswar and four domestic airports at Rourkela, Jharsuguda, Jeypore and Utkela (Kalahandi). This expansion comes as India's ethanol production capacity has overtaken what the E20 programme actually consumes, with the country producing roughly 20 billion litres annually and having 6-7 billion litres of surplus capacity.
The Shree Jagannath International Airport at Puri has been conceived primarily as a gateway for religious and international tourism, while the Paradip airport will be designed as a cargo-centric aviation hub integrated with the port, petrochemical industries and the Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR). The policy proposes upgrading 12 existing airports and dormant airstrips to create an aviation network connecting every region of the state with national and global markets. Rourkela is proposed to become a full-fledged commercial airport with a runway capable of handling Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 aircraft. The draft SAF policy is in its final stages and undergoing inter-ministerial consultations, with the minister stating the need to study all possible SAF pathways and identify the most cost-effective mechanism right from production to drop-in at the airport.
The draft policy positions airports as catalysts for industrialisation, linking airport expansion with logistics parks, cargo terminals, maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities, aviation skilling institutions and airport-led economic zones. Over the last two years, Odisha has attracted investment intents worth nearly ₹20 trillion across sectors including aluminium, petrochemicals, chemicals, renewable energy, semiconductors, IT, logistics and downstream manufacturing. The proposed aviation network has been strategically mapped onto Odisha's emerging industrial landscape, with officials expecting the integrated ecosystem to improve export competitiveness and generate high-value employment. India's ethanol expansion beyond petrol blending is expected to save the exchequer more than ₹1.44 lakh crore in forex and route over ₹1.18 lakh crore directly to farmers, with industry bodies estimating ethanol and biogas together could save India close to $25 billion in LPG subsidies over time.
The policy targets direct air connectivity from Odisha to more domestic cities while expanding international links to destinations including Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Colombo, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Dhaka, Hong Kong, Phuket, Bali and Kathmandu. Disaster resilience has been built into the aviation blueprint, with the policy proposing heliports across multiple districts and at major government medical colleges for emergency medical evacuation and disaster response. Of the 20 locations identified for heliports, 10 will be made operational in the initial phase. The government has approved indicative SAF blending targets of 1% by 2027, 2% by 2028 and 5% by 2030 for international flights, with discussions covering the development of a national SAF registry with end-to-end traceability and a monitoring and reporting framework aligned with ICAO requirements. CORSIA implementation has been divided into three phases: two voluntary phases (2021-2023 and 2024–2026) and a mandatory phase from January 1, 2027.
The policy targets at least 10,000 cumulative placements by 2029 through aviation training academies, flying training organisations, aircraft maintenance engineering institutes and specialised skill programmes in airport operations, logistics, drone technology and hospitality. According to Debadutta Suranjita Jena, director (civil aviation), the proposed aviation network is aligned with the Vision 2036 framework, linking air connectivity with industrial development, export competitiveness, tourism expansion and employment generation. The state government has indicated it expects to attract similar magnitude of investments over the next two to three years while shifting focus from signing MoUs to grounding projects. The immediate priority is to achieve the one per cent CORSIA blending requirement in the most cost-effective manner while developing a carbon-credit offset mechanism through a whole-of-government approach, ensuring the process imposes the least possible burden on passengers and airlines.
