Odisha Govt took proactive steps to open Jharsuguda Airport as the gateway to Western Odisha

 

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Govt took proactive steps to open Jharsuguda Airport as the gateway to Western Odisha. 118.75 acres of land given free of cost for this airport by State Govt. Also, ₹75-cr has been spent from State Budget for this airport out of the total cost of ₹210cr.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Jharsuguda Airport on September 22. Jharsuguda Airport terminal building enriched with the composite structure of 4000 sqm. equipped with state-of-the-art passenger facilities. The interiors of the terminal building depict local handcraft, artwork and tourist destinations of the state.

Jharsuguda Airport has the peak hour handling capacity of 300 passengers. The terminal building is equipped with Solar Power System, LED lighting, Rainwater harvesting to recharge the groundwater table followed with many more sustainable features.

The airport was spread over 909.22 acres. The State Government sanctioned Rs. 50 crore in July 2013 to kick-start the Rs 175-crore airport development project which was to be jointly executed by the Airports Authority of India(AAI) and the State Government. The AAI needed an additional 275.75 acres to convert it into a full-fledged airport.  including a 5,500 square meter new terminal building and air traffic control (ATC) tower.  On 30 July 2014, Odisha government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Airport Authority of India for development of the state’s second airport at Jharsuguda.  The Ministry of environment and forest (MoEF) gave its nod for the expansion of the airport to handle Airbus A320 aircraft in February 2015.  In May 2018, The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granted licence to Jharsuguda airport to make it the second operational airport in Odisha after the Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar.

 

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