New International airport to take off within three months: Aviation Minister

The new international airport in Ludhiana will take off within three months with the launch of international and domestic flights from here, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu has said.

At the same time, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has assured to direct the Indian Air Force (IAF) to expedite the ongoing pending work and complete it at the earliest.

The development assumes significance as the new international airport at the Halwara airbase has been almost completed after missing at least 13 deadlines in the past three years.

While Naidu assured the launch of flights from Ludhiana to Fatehgarh Sahib MP Dr Amar Singh, the assurance on the early completion of the IAF work was given by Rajnath Singh to Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora.

Dr Singh, who is the two-time Congress parliamentarian, called on the Civil Aviation Minister in New Delhi and apprised him of the current status of the upcoming airport. He urged Naidu to issue directions to the ministry functionaries to ensure the launch of international and domestic flights from Ludhiana immediately after the construction of the new airport was completed and handed over to the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

“Given the sacrifice made by hundreds of farmers who gave their lands, keeping in view the urgent need for air connectivity for the industrial hub and creating a central airport in the state for catering to NRIs and locals, I requested the minister to start commercial domestic and international flights from the Halwara airport as soon as the construction of the terminal is completed,” Dr Singh told The Tribune, adding that Naidu had assured him that the new airport in Ludhiana would be made operational with the launch of flights within the next three months.

Meanwhile, the MP Sanjeev Arora met the Defence Minister in New Delhi and urged him to expedite the pending work on the part of the IAF while apprising him that the civil terminal building of the new airport had already been completed.

Arora apprised Singh about the current status of the ongoing relaying work of the airstrip by the IAF, following which the airport will be ready for operations.

He opined that the new airport was crucial for enhancing operational capabilities of the airport and facilitating civil aviation activities.

“On my request, the Defence Minister has instructed the officials concerned to speed up the ongoing pending work,” Arora disclosed, adding that the completion of the IAF work would ensure the launch of operations at the new airport, the work on which he had been pushing and reviewing on a regular basis.

Earlier, the Rajya Sabha MP had also met the high-level team sent by Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran, which had visited the upcoming airport site on his request, to explore possibilities of launching flights from Ludhiana after the facility becomes operational.

Pertinently, the IAF has fixed December 31 as the deadline to complete the job, following which the Rs 5,822.12-lakh much-awaited and much-delayed big ticket project would see the light of the day.

While the integrated civil enclave and cargo terminal building, sub-station and toilet block at Air Force Station in Halwara, which is one of the oldest frontline airbases of the IAF, close to Ludhiana, had already come up, the allied civil works of the major civil aviation project have also been completed.

With all pending nods having been procured, the work on all other components, which were stalled since long, has also been finished.

Deputy Commissioner Jitendra Jorwal had recently stated that the civil construction work had already been completed and the IAF, which owns the airbase on which the airport had been built, had also finished 80 per cent work to widen link taxiways within the IAF campus, following which the airport would become operational.

He said the IAF had assured to complete the pending work under their territory by December 31.

The DC said once the IAF completed the work under its jurisdiction, the minor finishing work at the level of state government and the AAI would be done simultaneously.

“We will make the civil airport terminal ready in all respects by December 15 and hand it over to the Centre by December 31, before which the IAF will also complete its task,” Jorwal had said.