In its efforts to encourage more air travel to Surat, the city's diamond trading houses and safe deposit vaults shut down on Friday in protest, according to plans by the Surat Diamond Association, the Art of Jewellery reported.

"Air connectivity is very important for us and we are going to press our demands," said Dinesh Navadia, president of the SDA.

Surat has one airport, but only three flights arrive there per day: from Delhi, Kandla and Jaipur. While Surat is the world's largest diamond manufacturing center, it lacks air connections with big Indian cities like Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai, plus international destinations. The Surat Diamond Association members number 2,000, the Art of Jewellery reported.