Srinagar: Local officials in Kargil have urged the Center to start civil flights, saying connectivity is severely affected in winter when surface routes are closed.Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Kargil (LAHDC) Chief Executive Councilor (CEC) Mohammad Jafar Akhoon and Ladakh MP Mohammad Hanifa raised this demand in a meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on Thursday.“Air connectivity will boost tourism and will be of great help to the army personnel. Soldiers lose three to four days of leave while traveling from Leh and waiting to move on,” Akhoon said. He said the lack of direct flights was deterring countless potential visitors.Akhoon stressed that air connectivity is vital for the region, whose people now have to travel five to eight hours by road to reach the nearest airports in Leh and Srinagar.“There is no doubt that the Zojila tunnel will improve road connectivity, but Kargil still needs a dedicated air link. Small aircraft operate in many areas of the Northeast. Flights from Kargil to New Delhi and from Kargil to Srinagar can start with small aircraft from the existing (defense) runways. This could pave the way for full air connectivity and a full-fledged civilian airport,” Akhoon said.In talks with Shah, Akhoon and Hanifa also stressed on expediting five hydroelectric projects and demanded two new districts of Sanku and Shakar-Chiktan. “These are among the most populous and oldest subdivisions in Kargil and meet all the necessary criteria for the creation of districts,” Akhoon said.Both of these should be included in the upcoming notification regarding five new districts announced by the Union Home Ministry in August 2024. These are Ladakh, Zanskar and Dras in Kargil, and Sham, Nubra and Changthang in Leh.Akhoon and Hanifa also demanded a 200-bed hospital for Kargil to ease the pressure on the existing 100-bed district facility, engineering colleges and an agricultural university. Another major demand was for a dedicated India Reserve Battalion (IRB) for Kargil to strengthen law and order and provide jobs.Akhoon said Home Minister Shah’s response to the demands, including air connectivity, was “very positive”.