Now an industrial powerhouse, Kutch set for brand spanking new airport at Kandla port | Rajkot Information

RAJKOT: Kutch, which rose from the 2001 quake particles to an industrial powerhouse, is about to get a serious enhance with probabilities of a greenfield airport at Kandla brightening.
Deendayal Port Authority (DPA), which handles one in all India’s busiest ports, Kandla, has agreed in precept to allot 600-1,000 acres for the greenfield airport. Sources stated that the motion for a brand new airport at Kandla had been on since 2019, however the Airports Authority of India (AAI) was prepared to fund the venture provided that the land was accessible.

DPA chairman Sushil Kumar Singh instructed TOI, “We’re prepared to offer land to AAI in step with the land administration coverage relevant to the port. Two-three parcels have been recognized, and AAI will determine which is appropriate.”
Singh stated DPA cannot switch land possession however may give it on a 60-year lease. “We’ll talk to the civil aviation ministry the small print of the recognized land parcels.” At current, solely two flights of 78-seater plane function from Kandla airport, and the terminal capability is 250-300 passengers.
The Federation of Kutch Industries Affiliation (FOKIA), the umbrella group of industries that got here up after the earthquake, has additionally been pursuing the venture with the AAI with a sequence of conferences. AAI has already ready a grasp plan for 2049 for air connectivity to Kutch.
A senior AAI official instructed TOI: “We submitted the plan with projections of passengers contemplating the commercial and tourism growth of Kutch to the state govt a few months in the past. The potential for a brand new airport is large.” Earlier than the Covid-19 pandemic, AAI had demanded 300 acres from the state govt to develop the prevailing airport. Nevertheless, that a lot was not accessible and AAI revised its estimate to 178 acres. The acquisition hit a roadblock. So, AAI floated the concept of a greenfield airport by shelving the enlargement plan.
In June final yr, the Gujarat State Aviation Infrastructure Firm Restricted (GUJSAIL) wrote to the Kutch collector to establish a land parcel inside a 20-30 km radius of Kandla for the brand new airport.
Nevertheless, the method of figuring out appropriate govt wasteland is extraordinarily sluggish, and nothing has materialized to this point.