New Delhi, Sep 29 (IANS): Civil Aviation Minister P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Tuesday said both technology and regulations play an important role for making the skies safer for aviation and called for greater cooperation among south Asian countries for growth of aviation.

Speaking after inaugurating the steering committee meeting of Co-operative Development of Operational Safety and Continuing Airworthiness (COSCAP) - South Asia, he called on COSCAP and SAARC member states to cooperate on various issues concerning the aviation sector to propel its growth, an official statement said.

Civil Aviation Secretary Rajiv Nayan Choubey highlighted that very fast paced growth in technology, passenger traffic and quality manpower challenges as the three major issues staring at safety regulators.

Stressing that adequate infrastructure should be put in place for growth to follow and not vice versa, he invited member countries of the SAARC region and COSCAP to avail the services offered by India's GPS and geo-augmented navigation system (GAGAN) project.

COSCAP South Asia, under the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), is a programme of the seven of the eight SAARC countries bar Afghanistan, aiming to assist member states to develop standards and regulations for improving their independent oversight capabilities in aviation safety.