JEYPORE: The Jeypore airport under the Centre’s UDAN scheme for regional air connectivity may take longer to be functional than expected. With frequent revisions to dimensions of the airstrip leading to delays, a high-level committee of the State government will be discussing and taking a final call on the future course of action on Friday.
The latest revision of the runway’s length to 1,500 mt has been the main cause of delay as it will have to include Dhanpur canal area under the Upper Kolab project, and block water supply to adjoining villages.
In 2017, Jeypore airstrip had been proposed by the Civil Aviation Ministry to be included under its flagship UDAN scheme.
A year later, work started on the runway which was initially planned 915-mt long and 23-mt wide. The Public Works department of Jeypore Division was executing the work. However, the Centre suggested enhancing the airstrip to 1,200-mt long and 30-mt wide. Later, the Aviation Ministry again proposed to the State government to further widen the runway’s length to 1,500 mt to accommodate a 72-seater airplane.
But the proposal to increase the runway’s dimensions to 1,500 mt hit rough weather as the expansion would have to pass over Dhanpur main canal and block canal passage near Souraguda and Gaganpur villages. Last week, Berhampur RDC T Ao, former Koraput Collector Madhusudan Mishra along with senior PWD engineers visited Jeypore airstrip to take stock of the situation and discussed about the runway extension work.
Executive engineer of Jeypore PWD division Bhaskar Samantra said the final decision on runway extension passing the canal system would be decided on Feb 12 after a high-level committee meeting. ‘’We can decide on the runway extension work crossing Dhanpur canal areas only after the meeting,” he said.