RITES to provide technical consultancy for upcoming Noida heliport

The Noida Authority on Thursday roped in state-run RITES for technical consultancy for the upcoming heliport project in the city, officials said.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Noida Authority and RITES for the aviation project to come up in sector 151-A, the officials said.

Noida Authority CEO Ritu Maheshwari signed the pact with Rakesh Kapoor, Executive Director (Airports) for RITES, a public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Railways.

This heliport will boost economic and commercial activities in the area. According to the MoU, RITES will be paid Rs 1.70 crore for the technical consultancy. RITES had presented an estimate for the project which was approved by the Noida Authority, an official statement stated.

The approval for the heliport was given by the Noida Authority in its 197th board meeting in January. RITES was cleared as the technical consultant in the next board meeting.

According to the authority, the terminal building for the heliport would be spread in a 500 sq metres area and will have a facility for landing 172 helicopters.

There will be a facility for the movement of 20 passengers at a time, and space for parking three helicopters, as there would be a facility for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) too, it added.

Notably, a Greenfield international airport is also coming up in nearby Jewar in the same Gautam Buddh Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh.

The Rs 29,560 crore airport is billed to be the biggest in the country upon completion and the first phase work is underway.

The Noida Authority said the project has been divided into four phases. The detailed timeline and project cost is yet to be finalised.

The first phase would involve inspection of the site, the second phase will have technical feasibility of the project and formulation of the detailed project report (DPR), according to officials.

The third phase will have a study on the project's impact on the environment, while transaction advisory would be issued in the fourth phase, they said.