Hospitals, convention centres in airports soon?

New Delhi: India may soon boast of having hospitals and convention centres on airport land, enabling people quick access to these places to and from airports. The aviation ministry has asked the government to enlarge the scope of commercial activities on airport land by relaxing land use norms that are currently restricted to passenger-related things like hotels, restaurants, cargo and money exchange facilities.
Apart from easy access, the move is aimed at making airports commercially viable, especially in smaller cities where the state-owned Airports Authority of India (AAI)-run facilities perpetually lose money. At present, land use is decided by the AAI Act and is limited mainly to flier-related activities.
"The idea is to maximise revenue from land use and it's essentially aimed at smaller cities where AAI would then be able to cross-subsidise its aeronautical operations. At present, many airports in smaller cities are not making money, but are important from connectivity point of view. We want them to become commercially viable," aviation minister Praful Patel said.
22/07/10 Times of India

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Jul 2010, New Jul 2010