Move to impose user fee at T'puram airport draws flak

Thiruvananthapuram: A move to levy user fee from foreign-bound passengers at the international airport here has sparked strong protests from different sections, including travel and tourism industry here.
They were reacting to reports of the Airport Economic Regulatory Autority accepting the request of Airport Authority of India for levying User Development Fee at the rate of Rs 775 per outbound foreign passenger to make up the cost overrun of the construction of the new terminal.
Kerala Association of Travel Agents (KATA) said it was a great injustice to impose such a heavy burden on foregin passengers from here as more than 70 per cent of them constituted people working in the Gulf countries.
Resenting the proposal, local MP and former Union Minister Shashi Tharoor said this could not be justified as the airport was in public sector and not a private or joint sector one.
11/05/10 Press Trust Of India/Hindustan Times

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Categories: Airports May 2010, Foreign May 2010