BJP in, TMC out, Kolkata to join Delhi NCR, Mumbai in race for airports

The BJP-led government in West Bengal has announced plans for a greenfield airport near Kalyani, around 50 km north of Kolkata. Once operational, it will make Kolkata India's third metropolitan region with multiple commercial airports. Mamata Banerjee, as the CM, had resisted the Centre's plan for a second airport.

In Short

• Bengal budget announcement revives long-pending proposal for Kolkata's second airport
• The project would complement the NSCBIA and expand Kolkata region's aviation capacity
• Delhi NCR and Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) already operate with multiple airports

India's civil aviation map is undergoing a big transformation. After the National Capital Region (NCR) and Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), the urban agglomeration in and around Kolkata is set to become the country's third metropolitan region to be served by multiple commercial airports. Mamata Banerjee, as the Chief Minister of West Bengal, had opposed the Centre's push for a second airport for the Kolkata Metropolitan Area. With the BJP in power now, Kolkata has joined the race for airports.

The West Bengal government on Monday announced plans for a greenfield airport near Kalyani, around 50 km north of Kolkata, reviving a proposal that has been discussed for years, but never executed.

The project, after its completion, would give the Kolkata Metropolitan Area a second airport alongside the existing Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport at Dum Dum.

The announcement was made during the presentation of the West Bengal Budget 2026-27. Bengal's Finance Minister, Swapan Dasgupta, said the government would develop a greenfield airport near Kalyani as part of efforts to improve connectivity and support economic growth in the region.

The announcement comes after the previous government of Mamata Banerjee opposed the Centre's push for a second Kolkata airport. She argued that acquiring 1,000 acres would require evicting residents. Now, with the BJP now in power in West Bengal, the long-pending Kalyani proposal appears to have regained momentum.

The proposal places Kolkata in a small club of Indian metropolitan regions that operate, or are set to operate, multiple airports.

INDIA'S EMERGING MULTI-AIRPORT CITIES

Delhi was India's first major multi-airport urban region.

For decades, the National Capital Region (NCR) was served primarily by the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. In 2019, it gained a second civilian airport when commercial flights began operating from the civil enclave at Hindon Air Force Station in Ghaziabad.

Then, earlier this month, the NCR added its third civilian airport and second international gateway with the opening of the Noida International Airport at Jewar in Uttar Pradesh.

After the NCR, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) became the second urban agglomeration to host multiple airports. Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, with just one functional runway, has long operated near capacity.

To address future demand, the Centre developed the Navi Mumbai International Airport, which is expected to significantly expand aviation capacity in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.

The Kolkata-Kalyani combination would make the Kolkata Metropolitan Area, eastern India's first and India's third such metropolitan region.

Globally, major cities such as London, New York, Tokyo and Paris rely on multiple airports to handle passenger traffic and cargo operations, while also accounting for future growth. Aviation planners see multi-airport systems as essential for large urban agglomerations.

WHY DOES KOLKATA NEED A SECOND AIRPORT?

Kolkata airport handled nearly 2.1 crore passengers in FY 2024-25, making it one of India's busiest airports. Passenger numbers have steadily increased after the pandemic, while eastern India's economic activity, tourism and logistics requirements continue to grow.

A second airport could help distribute air traffic, reduce future congestion and improve connectivity to fast-growing districts north of Kolkata. Kalyani's location is also strategically significant because it lies along important road and rail corridors connecting Kolkata with Nadia district and neighbouring Bangladesh.

The airport would complement the broader development of the Kolkata Metropolitan Area, which has been expanding beyond the traditional city limits toward New Town, Rajarhat, Kalyani and other satellite urban centres.

The idea of a second airport for Kolkata is not new. Several sites, including Andal, Kalyani and areas in South 24 Parganas, have been examined over the years. However, land acquisition challenges, regulatory approvals and questions over financial viability have delayed any progress.

In 2022, then-West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee rejected the Centre's push for a second Kolkata airport, arguing that acquiring the 1,000 acres required for the project would mean displacing residents, reported PTI.

She accused the BJP-led Centre of politicising the issue and said her government would never acquire land by force. She also invoked the memories of protests of Singur and Nandigram, both of which propelled Mamata's and her TMC's political accent.

The latest budget announcement indicates that the BJP government led by Suvendu Adhikari, has moved forward with the Kalyani option.

After the project receives approval from the Central government and aviation regulators, Kolkata would join Delhi NCR and Mumbai as India's third metropolitan region with multiple airports. This is a milestone that reflects both a city's growth and its ambitions.

- Ends