Maharashtra to develop 10 regional aiports

The Civil Aviation Ministry and Airports Authority of India will collaborate with Maharashtra government to develop 10 small airports in the state as part of the government's Regional Connectivity Scheme, it was announced here on Tuesday.

An agreement to the effect was signed here making the state the first in the country under the Civil Aviation Ministry's ambitious National Civil Aviation Policy announced earlier this year to boost RCS.

"The MoU aims to facilitate regional air connectivity by making it affordable by enacting different concessions offered by the centre, state and operators. I am confident that with this, aviation in Maharashtra will move to the next level," said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

The MoU was signed in the presence of Civil Aviation Minister A. Gajapathi Raju and Fadnavis by which the state will contribute 20 percent cost of VGF and the central government will bear the rest.

The 10 selected airports are at Shirdi, Jalgaon, Nashik, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Kolhapur, Solapur, Nanded, Amravati and Gondia.

Of these, Shirdi Airport will begin operations from November, while an AAI team will come in early September to conduct a preliminary study of the proposed Greenfield international airport at New Chakan, Pune, Fadnavis said.

All the upcoming airports shall be provided with infrastructure like roads, railways, Metro and waterways and the state government would provide various amenities at concessional rates, as per the MoU.

--IANS

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