Work to begin soon on proposed airport in Nellore district of A.P.

Out of 1,379 acres of land required for the proposed greenfield airport at Digadarthi, the State government has so far acquired 630 acres

The works of Digadarthi airport, which is a long-pending demand of the residents of SPSR Nellore district, are likely to begin very soon. Out of 1,379 acres of land required for the proposed greenfield airport, the State government has so far acquired 630 acres. Next week, the representatives of Airports Authority of India (AAI) are scheduled to visit the district to inspect the airport location.

The airport was sanctioned during the regime of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in 2014-2019 and land acquisition began. A detailed project report (DPR) had also been prepared, but the works did not begin. SCL-Turbo Consortium Pvt. Ltd. had signed the concession agreement in September 2017 to develop the international airport under Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) mode. However, the agreement was terminated in July 2020 due to various reasons, including inability of getting lenders to fund the project and change of government.

YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) under its policy of ‘one district-one airport’ called for tenders from national and international organisations to prepare the DPR for handling passenger and cargo aircraft. The YSRCP government had approved the DPR submitted by the AP Airports Development Corporation Limited, but the works did not take off.

In a review meeting on Sunday, AP Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD) Minister Ponguru Narayana underlined the need for air connectivity for the district and recalled that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu during the election campaign had assured to build an airport at Dagadarthi. “During his recent visit to Delhi, the Chief Minister met Union Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu on this matter and the AAI team is scheduled to visit the district in the coming week,” Mr. Narayana said.

“Along with Krishnapatnam Port, Ramayapatnam Port and Juvvaladinne Fishing Harbour, Nellore district requires an airport also as it is developing as an industrial hub. The government still needs to acquire 711 acres of land for the airport. The compensation has been paid to some land owners, but the land is yet to be acquired,” Minister for Endowments Anam Ramanarayana Reddy informed.

During a a recent visit to the district, AP Minister for Roads & Buildings, Infrastructure & Investments B.C. Janardhan Reddy said that the top officials of the department had already inspected the site of the airport in Dagdarti and sought a report on this. District Collector O. Anand has given a report and based on that a design will be prepared for the establishment of the airport.

Published - October 28, 2024 04:46 pm IST