PUDUCHERRY: Puducherry is likely to be put on the air map in August with the construction work on the airport expected to be completed by next month, Chief Minister N Rangasamy said today.
The airport being developed by the Airports Authority of India at Lawspet here was likely to go on stream in August and ATR 72 aircraft can be operated from it to various places, he told reporters here after inspecting the work.
Flight services would be available from here to destinations like Goa, Madurai, Bangalore, Tirupati, Hyderabad, Vishakhapatnam, Thiruvanathapuram and Kochi. Talks are on with some of private airline to operate services.
Rangasamy said nearly 80 per cent of the work had been completed and remaining would be over by June.
It was likely that air services from Puducherry would be available from August. "Talks are on with certain private players including Jet Airways, Kingfisher and SpiceJet to operate the services," he said.
Official sources said Rs 56 crore had been provided by the Centre for the construction of airport which has a 1,500-m -long runway. The Puducherry government acquired the site at an outlay of Rs 18 crore. The terminal cost Rs 19 crore.
Puducherry, a former French colony, has become a tourist hub and every year around 80,000 tourists visit it between April and August.