Thursday, December 08, 2016

Airport expansion hits land wall - 100 acres required for Bagdogra airport decongestion, says AAI

The proposed expansion of Bagdogra airport that would have allowed for a new terminal building and apron in Siliguri has hit a land hurdle and may have to be scaled down, the Airports Authority of India said today.

Guru Prasad Mohapatra, the chairman of AAI who was here on a two-day visit and held meetings with state government officials and the Indian Air Force, said 100 acres was required for the expansion.

"There is, however, severe limitation of land here," Mohapatra said. "On the one hand, the number of passengers is increasing by 35 per cent in Bagdogra a year and has crossed 1.1 million. We need to take up elaborate plans to expand the terminal building to accommodate passengers. Also, infrastructure like aprons, hangars, an extended cargo area and parking lot are required," he said.

"As it appears that we would not be able to get the required land, we will have to scale down our expansion plan," the official added.

The AAI chairman, along with the secretary of the Union civil aviation department, met chief minister Mamata Banerjee recently, and requested for additional land.

"She has told us to speak with state officials. Accordingly, a meeting was held here in Bagdogra yesterday where the principal secretary of the state transport department and some other officials, along with officials from the IAF, were present. Though elaborate discussions were held, there was no final decision as how much land the state can provide us. We look forward at the next meeting, likely to be held in two to three weeks," the AAI chairman said.

The AAI sources said they had also approached the IAF - the airport is a civilian enclave as the runway and the air traffic control are under the IAF and the Bagdogra Air Force Station is close to the airport.
07/12/16 Avijit Sinha/The Telegraph
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