HUBBALLI: With the central government considering the monetising of the Hubballi Airport in the next two years, experts are hoping the move will help with more facilities and connectivity.
Under the national monetization plan (NMP), the union government is planning to monetise 25 airports including Hubballi and aiming to raise Rs 20,782 crore within four years. Hubballi Airport is one of the busiest airports in the state and connects important destinations such as Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, New Delhi, Kochi, Hyderabad and other places in the country.
As per regular travellers, the airport requires much more facilities to facilitate more routes from the city. As it is maintained by the Airport Authority of India, it requires time to develop the airport and to generate revenue too. There will be much delay in coordination and implementing new things which will result in a delay in development and air passengers will not get world-class facilities here. Till now the airport authorities are not able to introduce an online taxi booking service and the passengers are being charged more money by the private cab providers.
Mahendra Laddad, President, Karnatak Chamber of Commerce and Industry said, “If the airport is monetized, the private players will develop the airport and introduce more facilities. After investing money to develop the airport, it will tie-up with various airlines to introduce more routes from here. Finally, the people will be benefited and they have to pay money for better service too”
By monetizing the Hubballi Airport, the government is planning to generate Rs 130 crores, but it is not yet known whether it will be developed on a Public-Private Partnership model or some other model.