Patnaik requests Prabhu to name airport after freedom fighter

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has requested Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu to name the upcoming airport at Jharsuguda after eminent freedom fighter Veer Surendra Sai.

Born on January 23, 1809 in Sambalpur district, Sai sacrificed his life fighting against the British East India Company.

In a letter to Prabhu, Patnaik said been people had been demanding that the airport be named after Sai, who hails from the same region.

"Naming the airport after him will be a fitting tribute to the legendary son of the soil," Patnaik noted in the letter.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), on May 4, had accorded aerodrome license to the Jharsuguda airport, the second in the state after Biju Patnaik International Airport in Bhubaneswar.

Earlier, Odisha Chief Secretary A P Padhi, too, sent a letter to the Union Civil Aviation Ministry to make the same request, sources said.

Air Odisha will operate flights from Jharsuguda to Bhubaneswar, Ranchi and Raipur, fulfilling a long-standing demand of the people of western Odisha.

The average price of tickets for these flights would be around Rs 2,500.

Jharsuguda is one of the five airports in Odisha that has been selected under the Centre's flagship Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) scheme to provide regional flight connectivity.