The Indian aviation industry is undergoing a transformational change, with the government implementing several policies to not only make air travel easier, but also focusing on developing world-class infrastructure. Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new Integrated Terminal Building (NITB) of Veer Savarkar International Airport at Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. A few days ago, India’s Aviation Minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia inaugurated the fourth runway at Delhi International Airport, making it the only airport in India to have 4 runways with its first dual elevated taxiway.
In addition to these expansion activities at airports in India, the government is building several new airports, which is putting India on top of the global aviation map. Civil Aviation Minister Scindia recently said that India will have 200 airports in the next 5 years. He said that while 74 airports were made operational in 68 years, the BJP government led by PM Modi has made the same number of airports operational in the last 9 years, taking the total number of airports to 148. Here is the list of top 5 upcoming airports in India:
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1) Noida International Airport – Jewar, Uttar Pradesh
The upcoming greenfield airport at Jewar, to be called the Noida International Airport, easily the largest airport project in progress in India, is being developed by Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG. Being the second airport in Delhi-NCR, Noida airport is expected to reduce the high traffic load at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi.
The construction of the airport began in 2021 and the first phase is expected to be operational by 2024. Initially two runways will be made operational, and the airport will have a capacity to handle 12 million passengers before gradually increasing to 60 million passengers. airport. This will improve connectivity between Noida, Western Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and NCR.
2) Navi Mumbai International Airport – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Another big and ambitious project for India is a second airport in the Mumbai region, Navi Mumbai International Airport, which will serve as the second busiest airport in India, the existing Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. The airport is expected to reduce the load on Mumbai airport and will have domestic, international and cargo terminals.
The airport, spread over 1,000 hectares of land, is expected to handle 25 million passengers per year by 2025 after the first phase becomes operational. The airport will be made functional in three phases and is being built by the city and industrial development. Corporation with Adani Airports Holdings Limited.
3) Bhogapuram International Airport – Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
Bhogapuram Airport, also known as GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport, is a major upcoming airport serving the port city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. The airport will be the first major airport in the region and is owned by the GMR Group, the group that built the Delhi and Hyderabad airports. It is being built in a public-private partnership with Andhra Pradesh Airport Development Corporation (APADCL) and the Government of Andhra Pradesh.
While Visakhapatnam has an existing airport, it is run by the Indian Navy. Once the new airport is built, the Indian Navy will shift the civil enclave of the existing Visakhapatnam airport to Bhogapuram. The construction of the airport began in 2023 and is expected to be completed in early 2025. The airport will have one terminal and one 3,800 m long runway, Phase 1 with 6 million passenger capacity.
4) Purandar Airport – Pune, Maharashtra
Purandar Airport is an upcoming airport in the city of Pune, Maharashtra, and the first international airport in the region. The current Pune airport is a civil enclave inside the Lohegaon facility co-shared by the Indian Air Force and has limitations for operating flights after certain hours. The need to build an international airport in Pune was decided long back, but still no ground level work has started.
This greenfield project is stuck due to multiple site clearances and pending approvals and is located near Saswad and Jejuri in Pune’s Purandar taluka and will be owned by the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO). The Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) will be in charge of the operation and management of the airport.
5) Shivamogga Airport – Shimoga, Karnataka
Last on our list is the Shivamogga airport in Karnataka, inaugurated six months ago on February 27 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Industries Minister MB Patil on Thursday said that commercial operations at the airport are likely to begin from August 11, 2023. This will be the first airport in Karnataka to be operated by the state government. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has handed it over to the Karnataka State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation for operation and maintenance.
“Since operations at the airport will start from August 11, all preparations will be done by July 20,” he said. The pending works include deployment of ambulances and other essential vehicles for the airport, opening of a cafe and some appointments of technical and non-technical staff.