Rs 10 lakh per day fine if delay in Noida Airport project, says UP minister

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A fine of Rs 10 lakh per day will be levied on the developer of the upcoming Noida International Airport if there is a delay in the completion of the project, Minister Nand Gopal Gupta 'Nandi' said on Friday.

The Greenfield airport is coming up in the Jewar area of Gautam Buddh Nagar district in western Uttar Pradesh, some 70 km away from Delhi, and being developed by Switzerland-based concessionaire Zurich International Airport AG's special purpose vehicle Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL).

The state industrial development minister issued the directives to senior officials of the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) and the Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL), among other government agencies involved in the project, according to an official statement.

If the international airport is not ready on time, then a penalty will be imposed at the rate of Rs 10 lakh per day, the minister told the officials, according to the statement issued by his office.

Gupta was on a two-day visit to Noida and Greater Noida where he reviewed the workings of the local authorities as well as the YEIDA, which manages development of the region along the 165-km-long Yamuna Expressway in western Uttar Pradesh.

During the meeting with YEIDA and NIAL officials on Friday, the minister was informed that all no-objection certificates (NOCs) have been received for the airport, which will have the Sarus Crane bird as its symbol.

Gupta, who was earlier the minister of state's civil aviation, was also informed that the airport would be built in four phases and that a sum of Rs 4,200 crore is being spent during the first phase of the project as against an earlier estimated cost of around Rs 5,600 crore.

He was informed that in future, a metro train will also be run on the YEIDA's metro corridor, according to the statement.

According to officials involved in the project, the first phase of the Noida International Airport is scheduled to be completed by September 2024 with one runway and a capacity of handling 1.20 crore passengers annually by then.

The airport is billed to be India's largest airport upon full completion. It will be spread over an area of 5,000 hectare. The first phase will be spread over 1,300 hectare, according to officials.