'PwC to examine if Jewar airport can have 4 or 6 runways, smart city to come up nearby'

The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) has decided to rope in consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to examine if the Jewar airport can have four or six runways instead of the two proposed ones only.

The YEIDA, which manages land along the 165-km-long Yamuna Expressway, also set aside a targeted budget of Rs 430 crore for the upcoming airport as part of its contribution to the project in fiscal 2020-21, an official statement said.

The authority also gave its nod for developing a 'smart city' near the airport, which is expected to be operational by 2023.

It also set aside a budget of Rs 300 crore for a metro project connecting the airport with Greater Noida, it stated.

The decisions were taken during the 67th board meeting of the YEIDA held at its office in Greater Noida on Saturday.

The YEIDA has decided to rope in selected consultant PwC to study the expansion of Jewar airport from proposed two runways to four or six.

"The area surrounding the Greenfield international airport will be developed as a smart city. The authority will soon come out with new schemes for petrol pumps, hotels, kiosks, offices, showrooms, residential properties also, YEIDA CEO Arunvir Singh told reporters.

The YEIDA has set an expenditure target of Rs 3,889.48 crore for the year 2020-21. The main expenditure costs will include land acquisitions, development works, contributions towards the Jewar airport and multi-modal connectivity projects, the statement said.

The authority has set targeted revenue earnings of Rs 3,891.88 crore with most of it expected from the sale of industrial, residential, institutional and mixed-land use properties, among others, it added.