|
35 non-metro airports to be revamped
Poonam Singh
The Union ministry of civil aviation is planning to revamp 35 non-metro airports, including Ranchi, Bhopal, Trivandrum, Nagpur, Indrore, Trichy and Coimbatore. All 35 airports have been divided into groups of five airports each so that some of the non-profitable airports can be clubbed with the profitable ones.
Technical, legal and financial advisors have been appointed to conduct techno-economic feasibility studies of the airports and come up with an appropriate model based on the viability of each project. "The cost of revamping the 35 airports is expected to be around Rs 5,000 to 6,000 crore. Work on the airports will start in the next financial year and will be completed by 2008-2009," Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said in Mumbai recently.
Unlike airports in Delhi and Mumbai, modernisation of these 35 airports will not follow the PPP model. However, the ministry is seeking private partnership for city-side development such as retail, hotels, car parks, malls and other non-aeronautical ways of revenue earning. According to V. Thulasidas, Chairman and Managing Director, Air India, "Indian airports need faster immigration amenities to come up to world-class level. It's also very necessary to develop malls and duty-free retail shops to make airports attractive to passengers." Foreign investors are also invited to develop the city side. The income generated through this option will be used to repay or upgrade the facilities of the airport. Individual SPVs or JVs will execute the development, the mode will be finalised in a few weeks.
On the ongoing bidding process for modernisation of Mumbai and Delhi airports, Patel said, "Dr. Manmohan Singh, Dr. Montek Singh and myself have kept the interests of the participants in mind and made sure that the bidding process is extremely transparent with strict penalties imposed on offenders. By 2010, Mumbai and Delhi will have world-class airports." The technical evaluations of the six bids for these airports will be over by the end of October and the results would be out by mid-November, he stated. "To increase and address the air traffic overhaul of Mumbai airport, both runways will be made operational, one for landing and other for takeoff, by March 2006," he added.
Other proposals include a flyover from Mumbai international airport to the Andheri flyover for faster immigration clearance at the airport and a project to ease congestion at the Sahar cargo complex.
According to Patel, development of Navi Mumbai airport will happen in the next three to four years. Connectivity to this airport would be planned in packages that will include development of sea link and improvement of express highway. The minister also assured that both the international airports in Hyderabad and Bangalore were on schedule. Work on a new terminal in Aurangabad will start soon.
[24 October 2005]
|
