A full-fledged domestic common air cargo handling terminal will be commissioned at Mangaluru International Airport on June 26.
The terminal, which was expected to be operational from April, was awaiting the approval of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).
J.T. Radhakrishna, director of the airport, said Mangaluru was among 22 airports in the country permitted by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to handle cargo with private participation. Of them, the airport here was the first to get the BCAS approval and set to start the operations.
Mr. Radhakrishna said that the BCAS gave its approval on June 17. The AAI has outsourced the cargo handling at the airport to Cargo Service Centre India Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai. It has bagged the contract of managing the facility for five years. The facility had an X-ray machine, explosive-detection devices, closed-circuit television cameras and cubicles for keeping cargo. Explosive detection devices were required to ensure that cargo did not have explosive material.
At present, domestic cargo being handled at the airport terminal building at Kenjar by the AAI consist of parcels and postal articles only. Now, the airport handles 150 tonnes to 200 tonnes of parcels and postal articles a month. Passenger flights carried them as belly-load cargo. Passenger flights could carry only a limited quantity of cargo and they could not carry all kinds of cargo.
The cargo terminal had come up in old Dakkan Park building, a private building which was handed over to the AAI by the State government, last year.
Once the cargo terminal is opened, all kinds of cargo could be handled for cargo flights. This would give industries and traders an opportunity to send and receive cargo within India.
He said that the private agency selected would be exempted from paying royalty of the total business to the AAI for two years to attract more cargo to the airport.
It was awaiting the approval of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security
Once the terminal is opened, all kinds of cargo could be handled for cargo flights
