BENGALURU: The 70-year-old Jakkur airfield is a heritage institute in the country but the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited’s (BMRCL) and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike’s (BBMP) plans to bring down the aerodrome’s compounds has left officials and trainees from the institute worried. The BMRCL plans to pull down five acres of the west compound whereas the BBMP plans to raze three acres of the north compound.
Several aircraft hangars on its western and northern compounds will be demolished in the process of Metro and road construction. A hangar on the west-side has been there since the aerodrome’s establishment in 1948 and has earned itself a heritage status. A trainee at the institute said, “If the Metro line enters the airfield premises, most of the hangars on the west end will have to be razed. There is a hangar which belongs to National Cadet Corps (NCC), which trains B-certified NCC cadets for flying.”
Former flying instructor Amit Sobti said, “The west-side hangar is the biggest hangar in the airfield and accommodates massive aircrafts. Razing it would shrink the overall size of the aerodrome, subsequently posing problems for parking the aircraft.”
If initiated, the Metro work would raze the hangars of Deccan Aviation, Jupiter Capital and Agni Aerosport. The airfield official stressed that these hangars extend help with their aircraft during medical emergencies.
North compound to be torn apart
Additionally, the BBMP has plans to establish a road towards GKVK Layout, which stands on the northern end of the airfield. When CE visited the spot, we found several homes built next to the airfield compound, including the residence of Revenue Minister RV Deshpande. Currently, residents entering GKVK Layout have to use the road towards the southern compound. A source hinted the road towards GKVK Layout was proposed to ease the commute for the residents of the area. In response, Deshpande said, “Yes, the house towards the north of the aerodrome belongs to me. I, however, have no knowledge about the construction of a new road. If there is any issue, we will try to solve it.”
Plans of razing include:
● Aerodrome’s southern compound towards double road to be demolished by BMRCL
● Northern compound towards Deshpande’s home to be demolished by BBMP
● Heritage hangar towards the west of the aerodrome to be demolished by BMRCL