NEW DELHI: Air travellers will get a smoother and more comfortable flying experience in the coming days. The Centre on Wednesday announced that it was ready with a plan for upgradation and development of airports in the country involving investment of about Rs 1 lakh crore in the next five years.
The government stated that it had approved investments in expansion and upgradation of integrated terminals at Chennai, Guwahati and Lucknow airports by Airports Authority of India at a cost of Rs 2,467 crore, Rs 1,232 crore and Rs 1,383 crore, respectively. Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said that at Chennai airport, the total built-up area of the proposed terminal building, including the present proposal measuring 1,97,000 sq m will be 3,36,000 sq m with an annual capacity to handle 35 mppa (million passengers per annum).
The new terminal building incorporates green building features with an aim to achieve GRIHA-4 Star rating and will cater to the requirement of passenger growth up to the year 2026-27.
Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said the new Chennai terminal building will have a capacity to handle 35 million passengers per annum and take care of the growth requirement till 2027.
Similarly, the new terminal building at Lucknow will have an annual capacity of 13.6 million passengers and will cater to the passenger growth requirements up to 2030-31.
The new terminal building at Guwahati will have a capacity to handle nine million passengers per annum.
The Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Jayant Sinha, said that after due approval from the government, about Rs 25,000 crore is expected to be earmarked by the private sector for the upgradation and expansion of airports at bigger cities, including Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad.