Giving a boost to the state government's regional connectivity plan, private aviation company SpiceJet introduced five flights connecting Gorakhpur, Kanpur and Varanasi to other parts of the country.

These flights were formally launched by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at a function at his 5, Kalidas Marg official residence in Lucknow on Wednesday.

In his brief speech, the Chief Minister said that the move of the private aviation company would promote tourism in the state by increasing connectivity with other parts of the country. "Now commutation time between cities of Gorakhpur, Kanpur and Varanasi, which have historic importance, would be cut short as they would be connected with other cities of India," Yogi said.

The Chief Minister said that regional connectivity was the dream of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The more we connect our cities with other parts of the state through air, the more will be the tourism potential. This will provide quick travel from one city to another and help states like UP to showcase their tourism prowess," he said .

On the occasion, officials of SpiceJet gifted an aircraft model to the Chief Minister.

UP Aviation Minister Nand Gopal Gupta 'Nandi' said that UP was marching ahead in the aviation sector and very soon, 13 more flights would be introduced connecting more cities of the state. "Besides, around 10 cities in UP will be connected by services of small aircraft. A 20- seater plane would be used for the service with a flat fare of Rs 2,500," he said.

"Regional connectivity will also boost trade and limit dependence on traditional transports like rail and road," Nandi said.