Global help for Mangalagiri airport

Vijayawada: The Cabinet decision to develop airport at Mangalagiri in an extent of 5,000 acres is a move to attract investors across the globe to take part in the development of new state capital Amaravati. On the same lines, it has decided to develop the runway at Visakhapatnam airport.

“As part of increasing air connectivity from all major cities in the state to international destinations, the state government has initiated these steps,” industry experts said.

While welcoming the Cabinet’s decision to go for an MoU with the Airports Authority of India and the Union Government to develop infrastructure in civil aviation sector and also to increase regional connectivity, industry experts forecast the likelihood of air traffic from Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam increasing by 200 per cent in the coming two decades.

“Keeping in view proximity to South East Asian nations and countries like Singapore and Australia, the government is strategically taking these steps,” they said.

In fact, the government has directed the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) to start scouting for land for the proposed new international airport. The plan to have a separate international airport within the capital city area comes at a time when it is trying hard to get international tag for Gannavaram airport, 25 km away from the capital city.

It is learnt the government is planning to locate the new airport somewhere near Tadikonda, about 20 km from the riverbank in Amaravati.

Last year, municipal administration minister P. Narayana had said urban planners were taking up a study with the assistance of aviation experts to find a suitable location.

“The experts also studied air movement and weather pattern in the region before zeroing in on the location,” CRDA sources said.

The government would acquire 7,500 acres for the airport which, Mr Narayana said, was part of the Amaravati master plan.

An outer ring road at a cost of Rs 16,000 crore has been planned to make travel from Gannavaram airport to Amaravati easy.

“When Mumbai is struggling hard to meet the requirements of air passengers, AP should learn lessons from the financial capital of the country and plan accordingly,” felt AP Chamber general secretary Potluri Bhaskar Rao.