VIJAYAWADA: The cargo services at Gannavaram Airport are being underutilised, with only 400 kg of outbound cargo being processed on an average daily as opposed to its operational capacity of 40 tonnes a day. Statistics for the facility present a sorry picture. While the entire volume of outbound cargo at the airport in the month of September stood at 13 tonnes, in the month of April, it was a dismal 0.98 tonnes.
The airport’s domestic cargo services commenced in August 2018 and Shreepa Logistics, a private firm was given a contract to serve as the facility’s logistics partner. Proposals were also formulated by the officials concerned to set up a cold storage facility and an international cargo depot, processing centre. However, lack of public enthusiasm put these proposals on the back burner.
Speaking to TNIE Director of Gannavaram Airport, G Madhusudhan Rao said, “The Vijayawada airport has an umpteen potential of utilising its cargo facilities. Aqua products like shrimp and fishes can be easily transported to other tier one and tier two cities, with most of the products being delivered in less than a day.”However, the airport chief believes the public is hesitant to use the airport’s logistics facilities due to lack of awareness.
“People are not approaching us to avail the best possible experiences and instead making their way to the Hyderabad airport. The public should be informed that our facility is affordable. It is cost effective for traders as they need not approach middlemen to do their jobs and also time saving.”In the month of September, Hyderabad airport registered an inbound cargo of 2652 tonnes and outbound 1690 tonnes, with almost 30 per cent of it (800 tonnes) belonging to Vijayawada.
On the other hand, in Vijayawada an average of five tonnes of cargo is getting registered daily. K Venkata Ramarao, chief managing director (CMD) of Shreepa Logistics said, “It is true that the cargo services in Gannavaram Airport are being underutilised. Despite taking up several awareness campaigns, people are still opting for Hyderabad airport. Everyday we get around 400 kg of outbound cargo as opposed to the processing capacity of 40 tonnes per day. The same is true for inbound cargo. Around 30 per cent of their luggage is redirected to our city.”
He also pointed that the city airport’s advantages are failing to resonate with the public. “We have domestic flight services to all major cities in the country and can deliver the cargo within four to five hours, while it takes around seven hours to do the same from Hyderabad. We request the citizens to utilise our services.”