If you are an Air India frequent flier who lives under the constant fear of your flights being cancelled or the airline simply shutting down, fear not things are on the up for the airline or so it seems.

The minister also recalled the unique contribution of Air India in the "hour of crisis -- evacuating about 6,000 nationals from Yemen, 1,300 from Iraq and Libya and 17,500 passengers from quake-affected Nepal".

The minister told members that by 2020, Air India's fleet size is likely to grow, by about 100 aircraft to about 232, and of this 28 more aircraft will be added by January 2018.

Responding to members who during the debate on Monday raised issues concerning air passengers, the minister said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation has decided to use technology as an "enabler" and that a comprehensive e-governance project will be launched to offer 160 services online to stakeholders.

"This system will promote transparency, increase efficiency and service delivery, leading to greater ease of doing business. The first set of such services will be launched in May 2016," Raju said.

Among other innovative schemes, the minister said Cochin airport has become the "first in the world to exclusively run on solar energy with a total installed capacity of 12 megawatt".

Delhi and Hyderabad international airports also have eight and five-megawatt solar plants respectively.

With regard to safety issues, Raju said it will continue to be the endeavour of the government "to keep our airports and skies absolutely safe through foolproof adherence to prescribed international standards".

He said there was a "high degree of satisfaction" that in a very recent survey it was found that passenger and cargo security satisfaction level were assessed to be 99.25 per cent against a world average of 66 per cent.

To a specific issue raised by Congress member K.C. Venugopal on the fate of the request by Kerala government for an airline between Kerala and the Gulf countries, the minister said, "It (such a demand) is an imagination. No government or any airline in the name Kerala Airline has applied with the government of India."