Haryana ‘adopts’ international airport project amid high drama

Chandigarh: Till Friday afternoon, the Airports Authority of India was to sign an MoU with the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority to set up an international airport at Mohali. According to the Memorandum of Understanding, the AAI and the Punjab government were to have a 51:49 stake in the venture.
But by the end of the day, Haryana had a share in the project, too. Punjab and Haryana now have a stake of 24.5 per cent each. The new airport will be called Chandigarh International Airport and will be considered an extension of the existing one in Chandigarh.
Sources said it started with Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda asking Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel if a similar project was on the anvil for Haryana.
Along with Chandigarh MP and Union MoS for Finance, Pawan Kumar Bansal, Patel and Hooda held a brief meeting to “sort things out”.
Finally, Patel asked Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal to accept Haryana’s offer to be part of the Mohali airport project. After a brief meeting with his son MP Sukhbir Badal, the Punjab CM agreed.
Badal also made it a point to mention that Haryana will have to cough up about Rs 200 crore to keep one half of the deal.
“The airport will be in Mohali. I wonder what the Haryana Chief Minister had in mind when he decided at the last moment that his state will be a part of the project,” said a senior Punjab government officer.
04/01/08 Chandigarh Newsline

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Categories: Airports Jan 2008, New Jan 2008