The Darbhanga airport in north Bihar began operations on Sunday, meeting the long-standing demand of the people of the Mithila region who had to travel for hours to Patna to catch a flight.
As the first flight, operated by Spicejet, landed at the airport from Bengaluru, it was given the customary water salute, while the passengers were greeted with ”Mithila Paags” (a traditional cap) and garlands.
The plane then took off for Delhi with 180 passengers, including Darbhanga”s BJP MP Gopaljee Thakur, Darbhanga Town legislator Sanjay Saraogi and MLC Dilip Chaudhary.
Darbhanga will be connected by flights to Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, officials said.
People of the region will save at least four-five hours travelling to and from Patna with the airport beginning operations, they said.
