Kochi airport may reintroduce user fee

The Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL), India's first airport built under a public-private partnership, might decide to levy user fees again. CIAL used to charge a fee of Rs.500 per passenger till Dec 31, 2005. After a series of protests, it decided to do away with it. Speaking to IANS, company secretary of CIAL R. Venkiteswaran said that participants at the annual general body meeting held here Monday wanted to reintroduce the user fee from every departing international passenger.
Sparks are sure to fly if CIAL decides to reintroduce the user fee, all the more so because its profits in the last fiscal (2006-07) touched Rs.370 million, up from Rs.310 million the previous year.
CIAL, the first airport outside the ambit of the Airports Authority of India, began operations in 1999 with 76 flights per week. Today, 27 domestic and international carriers operate more than 400 flights every week from the airport.
11/09/07 IANS/Indiainteracts.com

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Categories: Airports Sep 2007