The government is considering operating new airports in the State built completely out of State funds, rather than handing them over to the Airports Authority of India.
Minister for Major Industries and Infrastructure Development M.B. Patil said in Vijayapura on Friday that the new airports in Kalaburagi and Shivamogga have been built from State funds and also the ones coming up in Hassan and Vijayapura are being constructed only out of State funds. The Union government has not released any funds for these projects. It seems meaningless to hand them over to the AAI. The State government is considering a proposal for operating and maintaining them, he said.
He was speaking to journalists after inspecting the airport site. The project will finally cost nearly ₹400 crore, he said.
The State government has released ₹300 crore for the works till now. An additional ₹50 crore has been released to ensure timely progress of works.
Work on the airport in Vijayapura will be speeded up to meet the deadline of inaugurating it in April 2024, Mr. Patil, said. He said that the new airport will facilitate export of farm produce such as grapes and boost tourism in the region. The district in-charge Minister said that the civil works of the Vijayapura airport, which is being built on 727 acres, will be completed by the coming December.
“The airport was planned for flight operations only during day. But I have asked officers to include night landing facilities. The equipment needed to enable night landing facility will be procured soon. We are also planning to increase its capacity in such a way that landing of jumbo-sized aircraft will be facilitated,” he said.
Additional land acquisition is being taken up to ensure this. Two fire extinguisher vehicles will be parked at the airport as per the DGCA norms. Passenger amenities such as lounges, canteen, toilet and others will be similar to those available in larger airports, he said.
Officers of the Public Works Department have applied for environmental clearance. The multidisciplinary team of the Union government has also been sought to examine the work. The team is likely to visit during August.
Works under package-1 taken up at a cost of ₹222.92 crore include main and peripheral roads apron, taxiway and others. The package-2 worth ₹86.20 crore includes the construction of the passenger terminal, ATC building, electricity substation, compound, watch tower and underground tank. The third package worth ₹19.30 crore will have electromechanical devices. In addition, ₹19.41 crore has been incurred on power supply, survey among other expenses.
Member of Legislative Assembly Vitthala Katakadonda, KSIIDC Managing Director M.R. Ravi, Deputy Commissioner T. Bhoobalan, Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Rahul Shinde, Superintendent of Police H.D. Ananda Kumar and others were present.
