Road Transport in India

India’s most preferred mode of transport, Road transport system enables one to cover almost every nook and corner of the country. In fact, travelling in various parts of India becomes very convenient, if you know the transportation facilities offered by state road transport corporations including undertakings or institutions authorized by the Ministry of transportation government of India or by the authorities of state governments. All the government authorized transport organizations have their own operational style and they try their best to provide hassle free services to public.

Almost all the Indian states have their own state road transport corporation, providing transport facility within the state and the neighboring states. Apart from the public transport corporations run by state governments, private operators also play a major role in fulfilling the needs of the public. Besides intra state and inter city services, some of the state transport corporations offer city bus services. The city bus services usually provide affordable and on-time service to the public.

The buses run by private operators usually remain in good condition and attract more-and-more commuters due to on-time service and good condition of buses. Major types of buses found across India are Deluxe bus, Luxury bus, Volvo bus, Coach bus, 2x2 bus, 2x3 bus, video coach and simple city bus with seating and standing space. Choose the buses according to your needs and budget, and reach your desired destination by road transport in a short time.

Find the list of some of the major state transport corporations and transport departments of India.

Andhra Pradesh - Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation - APSRTC - http://www.apsrtc.co.in

Assam - Assam State Transport Corporation - ASTC - http://www.assamtransport.com

Bihar – Bihar State Transport Corporation - http://bstdc.bih.nic.in/Transport.htm

Delhi - Delhi Transport Corporation - DTC - http://www.dtc.nic.in

Goa - Kadamba Transport Corporation - KTC - http://goagovt.nic.in/charter/files/KTC/charter.pdf

Gujarat - Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation - GSRTC - http://www.gujaratsrtc.com

Himachal Pradesh - Himachal Pradesh Road Transport Corporation - HRTC – http://www.himachal.nic.in/hrtc

Jammu & Kashmir - Jammu & Kashmir State Road Transport Corporation - JKSRTC - http://www.jksrtc.nic.in

Karnataka - Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation - KSRTC - http://www.ksrtc.in

Kerala - Kerala State Road Transport Corporation - KSRTC - http://www.keralartc.com

Maharashtra - Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) - http://msrtc.maharashtra.gov.in

Rajasthan - Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation - RSRTC - http://www.rsrtc.gov.in

Tamilnadu - State Express Transport Corporation - SETC - http://www.tnstc.in

Uttar Pradesh - Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation - UPSRTC - http://www.upsrtc.com

Uttarkhand - Transport Department - http://www.uttara.in/transport/transport_intro.html

Punjab - Punjab State Road Transport Corporation - PEPSU - http://punjabgovt.nic.in/GOVERNMENT/PepsuRoad.htm

International Airlines in India

In the past decade India’s aviation industry has witnessed a rapid growth that has encouraged global airlines to start their service. Currently, dozens of airlines including world’s leading carrier offer flight services to and from major cities of India. Besides major Indian cities, namely Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, international airlines operate flights from other cities like Bangalore, Cochin and Mangalore. Each year these international airlines serve to leisure as well as business travellers visiting India from different parts of the world. Along with a comfortable travel, the international airlines in India provide access to first class in-flight amenities and services. Some of the popular international airlines operational to and from India are as follows:

Aeroflot – Officially called ‘Aeroflot – Russian Airlines’, Aeroflot is the national flag carrier of Russia. Established on February 9, 1923, Aeroflot commenced its operation on July 15, 1923. Aeroflot offers its services to 97 cities in 48 countries across the world from its main hub at Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow. Currently Aeroflot has a fleet of 91 aircraft from Airbus, Boeing and Ilyushin families.

British Airways – British Airways is the national airline of the United Kingdom (UK) and ranked as the largest airline of the UK on fleet size and other components. With its primary hub at London Heathrow Airport, British Airways offers its flights for over 370 destinations worldwide. British Airways was founded on March 31, 1974 after the merger of BOAC and BEA. The vast fleet of British Airways has 239 aircraft belonging to two families, namely Airbus and Boeing.

Air France – Air France or Air France, S.A is the flag carrier of France having its headquarters in Tremblay-en-France, France. One of the biggest and oldest airlines of the world, Air France serves to 32 domestic destinations and more than 100 destinations worldwide. Air France has its principal hub at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport and currently operates a fleet of 248 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing families.

Cathay Pacific Airways – Cathay Pacific Airways is a Hong Kong based airlines founded by American Roy C Farrell and Australian Sydney H De Kantzow in 1946. The airline has its main hub at Hong Kong International Airport and offers scheduled passenger and cargo services to 114 destinations in 36 countries across the world. Cathay Pacific Airways has a fleet of 126 wide-body aircraft from Airbus and Boeing families.

Etihad Airways - The national carrier of Abu Dhabi (UAE), Etihad Airways or simply called as Etihar is a major airline of Asia. Etihad was founded in the year 2003 and currently operates around 147 daily flights to 64 destinations in 42 countries worldwide. The main hub of Etihad is Abu Dhabi International Airport and its head office is in Khalifa City A, Abu Dhabi. Etihad has a fleet of 55 aircraft including 5 cargo flights. In India Etihad Airways operates flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Trivandrum, Bangalore and Chennai.

Lufthansa - Founded in January, 1926, Lufthansa is one of the important airlines of the world. It is a German Airline having its headquarters in Cologne. Lufthansa is the founding member of Star Alliance and currently offers its services to around 410 destinations worldwide. The fleet of Lufthansa has 274 aircraft that include Airbus, Boeing and Bombardier aircrafts. Lufthansa flies to Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Singapore Airlines – Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA) or Singapore Airlines is the flag carrier of Singapore. The primary hub of the airline is Singapore Changi Airport and it has a strong presence in the South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia and many other destinations worldwide. Singapore Airlines has a fleet of 106 aircraft and it offers services for 61 destinations including Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore. Originated in 1947, it was earlier known as Malayan Airways. It is one of the six airlines of the world to receive a 5-star rating by Skytrax.

Virgin Atlantic Airways – A private airlines run by Richard Branson's Virgin Group, Virgin Atlantic Airways has its main base at London Heathrow Airport. It was the first airline to offer individual TVs to their business class passengers. Virgin Atlantic has one of the youngest fleets in the world and currently boasts of 37 aircraft. Virgin Atlantic flies to Indian cities, namely Delhi and Mumbai.

Thai Airways International - Thai Airways International, the national airline of Thailand came into being in 1960 as a result of the joint venture between Thailand's domestic airline Thai Airways Company and Scandinavian Airlines System. It operates domestic, regional and international flights to many destinations of the world. Thai Airways International has its main hub at Bangkok International Airport. The airline has a fleet of around 99 aircrafts and offers its services for 71 destinations including Indian cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Bangalore.

Sri Lankan Airlines – SriLankan Airlines Limited, earlier known as Air Lanka is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka. With its main base at Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport, Sri Lankan Airlines offers its flight services to 49 destinations in Asia and Europe. Currently the fleet of SriLankan Airlines has 13 aircraft from Airbus family. The airline flies to many cities in India such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kochi, Hyderabad and Goa.

Air Canada – Air Canada is the flag carrier and the biggest airline of Canada. Founded in 1936, Air Canada offers scheduled and chartered services to 178 destinations around the world. Air Canada has a vast fleet of 202 aircraft including aircrafts from Airbus, Boeing and Embraer families. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance and provides its service to Indian capital city New Delhi.

Other popular international airlines to India are: American Airlines, Finnair, Kuwait Airways, Malaysia Airlines, Druk Air, US Airways and United Airlines.

Domestic Airlines in India

The airline industry is existing in India since a long time, and flights are available in domestic and international sectors. However, in this decade the domestic market of airline has seen a rapid growth in India. Thanks to Captain Gopinath, the man behind the attractive concept of Low Cost Carrier (LCC) Air Deccan that changed the whole domestic market in India. In fact, the air travel that was mainly restricted to elite group people slowly become the favourite mode of transport for middle-class people. With the passage of time many other airlines introduced the cheap flights in the domestic routes of India including second-tier cities. From government owned Air India and privately owned Jet Airways in the 2000s, many airlines came into existence in India that include Kingfisher Airlines, Kingfisher Red, IndiGo Airlines, GoAir, SpiceJet, Paramount Airways, MDLR Airlines, Jagson Airlines and JetLite. Whether you are a dometic traveler or a foreigner, you can rely on India’s domestic airlines and enjoy a hasslefree air travel with access to in-flight amenities and on ground service.

Air India

India’s flagship carrier Air India was started by JRD Tata in the year 1932. Air India was previously known as Tata Airlines. It was only in August 1946 that Tata Airlines was converted into a Public company under the name of Air India. From 1948 that Air India started its international operations. In early 1950's due to the declining financial conditions of various airlines, the government decided to nationalize air transport. This gave birth to two autonomous wings - Indian Airlines and Air India International. The Indian Airlines was formed by the merger of eight domestic airlines whereas Air India International was established to operate the overseas services. However later the word' International' was dropped. Since then the company has been called as Air India Limited. Air India's network today covers 29 destinations (excluding subsidiaries) all over the world with a fleet consists of 31 aircrafts.

Indian Airlines

Indian Airlines now known as Indian is one of the premier airlines of India. It is fully owned by the government and was established in 1953. It provides its services in India as well as in other neighboring countries. It was only after the nationalization of eight private airlines that Indian Airlines came into being. At the time of nationalization Indian Airlines inherited a fleet of 72 aircrafts (excluding subsidiaries). Since then the fleet has been in a mode of continuous up gradation. Indian Airlines covers around 63 destinations.

Air India Express

Air India Express is a low-cost carrier subsidiary of Air India that operates mainly to the cities of Middle East and Southeast Asia. A fully owned subsidiary of National Aviation Company of India Ltd., Air India Express operates around 100 flights per week, mainly from its bases in Kerala and other south Indian states. Established in May 2004, Air India Express commenced its operation on April 29, 2005. Currently with a fleet of 21 aircrafts, Air India Express offers its service for 31 destinations.

Air India Regional

Initially started as Alliance Air, Air India Regional is a lost-cost subsidiary of Indian. Founded in 1996, Air India Regional has its main hub at IGI Airport in New Delhi. Currently Air India Regional has a fleet of 11 aircraft that include ATR 42-320 (7) and Bombardier CRJ-700 ER (4). Air India Regional offers its flight services for 27 domestic destinations.

Jet Airways

Jet Airways is one of the premiere private airlines of India. It operates over 400 flights daily to around 67 destinations in 19 countries across the world. It operates daily international flights to many destinations in Asia, Europe, Africa and North America. Established on April 1, 1992, Jet Airways commenced its operation on May 5, 1993. Jet Airways has its main hub at Chhtrapati Shivaji International Airport, while Brussels Airport, Chennai International Airport and IGI Airport Delhi are its secondary hubs. Owned by London-based billionaire Naresh Goyal, Jet Airways has 90 aircraft in its fleet.

Jet Konnect

Jet Konnect is a lost cost brand of Jet Airways, which was launched on May 8, 2009. The airline shares the same airline code and callsign like Jet Airways, only the in-flight amenities have been curtailed. Now passengers travelling in Jet Konnect flight need to buy meal on-board while travelling to any destination. Jet Konnect operates a mix fleet of ATR 72-500 and Boeing 737-800s flights.

JetLite

Another subsidiary of Jet Airways, JetLite was actually established as Sahara Airlines on September 20, 1991 and began operations on December 3, 1993 with two Boeing 737-200 aircraft. Due to financial Sahara Airlines that was rebranded as Air Sahara on October 2, 2000, was taken over by Jet Airways chief Naresh Goyal on April 12, 2007. Air Sahara was renamed as JetLite on April 16, 2007 and now mainly targets second tier cities of India. Currently JetLite has a mixed fleet of Boeing 737 Next Generation and Bombardier CRJ-200 ER aircraft.

Kingfisher Airlines

Kingfisher Airlines, a leading private airline of India is based in Bangalore. It is owned and managed by the liquor baron Vijay Mallya. The operations of Kingfisher Airlines started in May 2005. The chief Indian destinations covered by the airlines are: Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Cochin, Pune and many other Indian destinations. In a short span of time, Kingfisher Airlines has come a long way. Several unique facilities are offered to the customers flying by Kingfisher Airlines. It was the first airline of India to operate with all new aircrafts. Kingfisher Airlines operates over 375 daily flights to 71 destinations with regional and long haul international services. Currently Kingfishr Airlines has a fleet of 66 aircrafts and the airline has placed order for 130 more aircraft including 5 Airbus A380-800.

Kingfisher Red

Formerly known as Simplifly Deccan or Air Deccan, Kingfisher Red is a low-cost subsidiary of Kingfisher Airlines mainly focusing to second-tier cities of India. Headquartered in Mumbai, Kingfisher Red is the only low cost carrier that offers complimentary in-flight meals to air travallers. Kingfisher Red has a fleet of 21 aircraft and offers its service for more than 60 destinations in India.

GoAir

GoAir is a low cost budget airline that is based in Mumbai. The leading Indian brands of Bombay Dyeing and Britannia are the promoters of the airline. GoAir is the brainchild of Jeh Wadia, who is also the Managing Director of the airline. The services offered by GoAir totally quality based, punctual and affordable. The airlines theme line is 'Experience-the Difference'. Currently the airline covers 13 destinations. Some of them are: Hyderabad, Delhi, Goa, Jaipur, Jammu, Pune, Mumbai and Srinagar.

Spice Jet

Spice Jet like is a low cost airline based in New Delhi. The main motto of Spice Jet is to become no.1 low cost airline of India by offering lowest airfares to the middle class customers. It's objective in a nutshell is to provide the benefits of travelling by air to everyone. The Spice Jet Airlines began its operation in 2005. Earlier it was known as Royal Airways. The fleet of aircrafts that it owns promises excellent technology and trend. It currently flies to 11 destinations - Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Jammu, Kolkata, Mumbai, Srinagar.

IndiGo

IndiGo Airlines is one of the new entrants in the aviation industry. Its inaugural flight took off from Delhi to Imphal in August 2006. The airline targets those class of people who are cost conscious and look for affordable, punctual and hassle free services. It has a fleet of certain aircrafts that are technological advanced. The IndiGo Airline has plans to serve around 30 Indian cities with a fleet of 40 Airbus A - 320 s by 2010. The cities on which they are concentrating are: Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Guwahati, Bangalore and Nagpur.