The Hindu : National : Kolkata airport a test of public enterprise, says Pranab

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Kolkata airport a test of public enterprise, says Pranab

Special Correspondent

Kolkata: The proposed new airport near Durgapur in West Bengal will be the country’s first project under the New Greenfield Airport Policy, Union Minister of Civil Aviation Praful Patel announced here on Monday.

Speaking on the occasion of the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the ‘Development and Modernisation of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport,’ he said the new airport, proposed to be set up at Andal with equity participation by Changi Airport of Singapore, would give a new profile to West Bengal.

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the chief guest, said the modernisation of the Kolkata airport which is being implemented by the Airports Authority of India Ltd will be a “test of public enterprise. I expect no cost or time overrun,” he said.

Earlier, CPI(M) polit bureau member Sitaram Yechury, also the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Tourism and Civil Aviation, said this is a test case for AAI to prove that they are as, if not more, competent than the private sector. “We are confident that they will prove themselves,” he said.

Mr. Patel said that while the modernisation of the Chennai and Kolkata airports would be done by the AAI, the joint venture model has been adopted for Mumbai and Delhi. He said that AAI was a sound organisation which will implement this Rs. 1942 crore project as well as the Chennai project without any borrowings. He said that was taken up for 15 non-metro airports and some were also completed.

Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, who inaugurated the modernisation project, said this was a red-letter day for the State and preliminary work already started in November. He said that once completed, this project would aid the ‘Look East’ policy of the Centre.

On the project at Andal, he said that land acquisition had started for the project which will come up in the State’s industrial belt. On the modernisation project, he said a Bangkok company was chosen through global bidding to implement it.

AAI chairman K. Ramalingam said this project was part of the country’s efforts to stay prepared once the economic gloom lifts in the years to come. The east has to become a hub if the Look East policy is to succeed, he said.

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