First flight to land on Sep 1 at Mopa airport

Panaji, June 7

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday said that flights will start landing at Mopa airport from September 1. The inauguration date, however, is yet to be decided.

Sawant, speaking while giving appointments to 21 candidates in harness cases, said that the greenfield Mopa airport will give much scope to the youth of Goa to work in the aviation sector.

"We will decide on inaugurating this airport between August 15 to 30. In the next six months 500, candidates will be recruited here. In allied services, it will require more one thousand staff, within six months, once the airport is commissioned," Sawant said.

He said that those Goan youth, and specifically from Pernem (where the Mopa airport is being built) want their aviation skill to get updated, can take admissions for better prospects.

"From September 1, flights will start landing at Mopa. We will have to join training (centres) to get jobs in this area. Government jobs are not only jobs, even the private sector has good opportunities. We need to grab them," he said.

Sawant said that continuous skilling and training is required to get jobs in the aviation area.

"It will be a continuous process of recruitment here. For this we will need to skill ourselves," he said.

"Even the hospitality sector is a bigger sector, if we take admissions in such courses (through ITI and polytechnics) then it will help as two lakh jobs will be created in this sector within two to three years," he said.

"For this we will have to achieve skill and will have to upgrade ourselves. Many courses are available in Goa," he said.

He said that sincerity and punctuality can give a bright future. "Public servants should not forget that they are here to serve the people and deliver good service," Sawant said, adding that could give a bright future.