The Malabar Development Council has urged Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to back the proposed Malabar international airport at Thiruvambady in Kozhikode district, which it says will neither cause any financial burden on the government nor harm the prospects of the Calicut and Kannur airports.
C.E. Chakkunny, president of the MDC, who is also the chief coordinator of the proposed greenfield airport, in a memorandum, pointed out that the State government’s support was crucial in turning the Thiruvambady airport into a reality.
Mr. Chakkunny told The Hindu that the MDC had in November applied to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and the Civil Aviation Ministry for sanction to build the airport at Thiruvambady. The AAI had asked it to route the application through the State government. The MDC had forwarded the 17-page application format to the government.
He pointed out that the resumption of operation of wide-bodied aircraft at the Calicut airport was quite unlikely in view of the difficulties in acquiring land. Because of the discontinuation of the operation of Code E aircraft at the Calicut airport since May 2015, thousands of international passengers and Haj pilgrims were forced to rely on other airports.
‘No displacement’
The proposed greenfield airport would not be burden on the Centre or the State government as several companies were ready to bankroll the project. Since a large rubber estate at Thiruvambady was available to be developed into the airport, not an acre of land would have to be acquired and hence there would be no displacement of people, he said.
Mr. Chakkunny told The Hindu that the Chief Minister was reluctant earlier as he feared that the proposed airport would harm the prospects of the upcoming Kannur airport as well as the Calicut airport.
Mr. Chakkunny said he had forwarded a list of airports, including the Navi Mumbai airport and the new Goa airport, which were not very far from the old ones.
Meanwhile, a Malabar International Airport Committee, with Thiruvambady panchayat president P.T. Augustine as chairman, has been registered.
