145;Direct flight to Kerala needed146;

The United Kerala Foundation has demanded starting of a direct flight to one of the cities in Kerala from Pune. The foundation submitted a memorandum in this regard to Air India station manager Dhairyasheel Vandekar on Wednesday.

8220;There are around five lakh Keralites residing in Pune. There is a lack of convenient travel facilities to Kerala. If someone wants to catch a flight to Kerala, one has to go all the way to Mumbai,8221; said K S Ravi, general secretary of United Kerala Foundation. Most of the Keralites here would prefer to travel by flight, he said.Ravi said flights from Pune should connect destinations such as Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode. 8220;Other than Keralites, there are also a number of tourists who go to various places in Kerala. 8221; he said. Dhairyasheel Vandekar, station manager, Air India assured the delegation of the foundation that the matter would be taken up with the competent authorities.

8220;There is scope to start a Kerala flight from Pune. We will try to push the demand as soon as possible,8221; he said.