As a part of plans to improve airport infrastructure of the country, the government has approved a proposal, to build new terminals at three airports of Chennai, Guwahati, and Lucknow at a total cost of Rs 5,082 crores.
In a meeting which held on May 2, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for the expansion and upgradation of integrated terminals at Chennai, Guwahati and Lucknow airports. The cost which will involve in the upgradation of these airports will be Rs 2,467 crores, Rs 1,383 crores and Rs 1,232 crores, respectively.
In the press briefing, Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “The government has taken a historic measure, to improve airport infrastructure in the country.”
Civil aviation minister, Suresh Prabhu, who was also present during the press briefing said, ” The new terminal building approved for the Chennai airport, will have a capacity to handle 35 million passengers per annum and take care of the growth requirement till 2027. The total built-up area of the proposed terminal building at Chennai airport will be expanded to 3,36,000 sq meters. The new terminal building will incorporate green building features, with an aim to achieve GRIHA 4-Star rating.”
He further said that the proposed terminal building at the Lucknow airport will have a capacity to handle 13.6 million passengers a year and will cater to growth requirements up to 2030-31. The new airport will be a major force multiplier towards Uttar Pradesh’s growth. The expanded integrated terminal will have an area of 88,000 sq meters, along with the existing terminal building with 16,292 sq meters, to handle 2.6 million international and 11 million domestic passenger traffic.
Another airport which is on the list of upgradation is the Guwahati airport. According to Prabhu, the new terminal building at the Guwahati airport will have an area of 1,02,500 sq. meters which will handle combined annual capacity of nine million passengers per annum. The building would cater to the requirement of passenger growth up to 2026-27.
In the last three years, the Indian aviation sector has seen a phenomenal growth. The current growth rate in the domestic aviation sector of India is the highest globally. On the other hand, under the New Greenfield Airport Policy, many major cities are expected to have multiple airports. All these initiatives will help in meeting the growing demands of the aviation sector of India.