Govt lines up 275,000 mn for airport upgrade till FY26

The Centre has allocated almost $275 million to support airport infrastructure projects, which prominently include the development of new airports, the addition of passenger terminals, the improvement of runways, the construction of taxiways, and the development of new ATC towers. This is in line with the recent launch of UDAN 5.0, a regional connectivity programme that would improve air access to non-metro airports by changing regulations. Before the middle of 2024, more than 70 projects totaling 180 million dollars are expected to be finished. The projects include creating a greenfield airport at Hirasar (Rajkot), extending terminal buildings in Surat and Goa, expanding the civil enclave at the airport in Gwalior, and erecting an ATC tower in Kolkata, among others. According to a study by the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), development on a greenfield airport in Dholera, Ahmedabad is now underway and is anticipated to be finished by December 2025. Modernization of the Chennai airport (Part-2 of Phase-II) would be finished by July 2025. According to the report, the government finished 33 projects worth a total of 28,070 million in 2022. At least 16 more projects, totaling $64,050 million in investment, are in the planning stages. These include the development of new integrated terminal buildings in Srinagar and Udaipur, a new domestic terminal in Bhubaneswar, an extension of the terminal building in Rajamundry, a greenfield airport in Kota, among other projects. 180 (underserved and unserved) airports have been designated under the UDAN scheme for flight operations by FY24, comprising 25 water-aerodromes and 40 helipads/heliports.