The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday approved the Authority of airports of India’s proposal to develop a Greenfield Airport in Kota-Bundi, Rajasthan, at an estimated cost. 1,507 crore, better aviation at the state’s industrial and educational centers paves the way for infrastructure.
A PIB release states that Kota, situated on the banks of the Chambal River, is recognized as the industrial capital of Rajasthan. In addition, Kota is famous as the educational coaching hub of India.
The government of Rajasthan has transferred 440.06 hectares of land to the Airport Authority (AAI) for the development of Greenfield Airport, which is suitable for operating the Airbus A -321 type aircraft.
The project includes the construction of a terminal building spread over an area of 20,000 sqm, capable of handling 1000 peak and passengers (PHPs) with an annual capacity of 2 million passengers per year.
The prominence of quota in educational and industrial areas makes the airport an important infrastructure project, aimed at addressing the anticipated traffic growth in the region.
Odisha Highway Project
The union cabinet on Tuesday approved the construction of six-lane, 111 km-napped capital region Ring Road, or Bhubaneswar bypass in Odisha, on total capital cost 8307.74 crore in hybrid annuity mode.
Ring Road will connect Rameshwar to Tangi, which is on the existing Chennai-Kolkata National Highway, which is experiencing significant crowds due to high traffic versions, which passes through the cities of Kord, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
The PIB release said the project would provide significant benefits to Odisha and other eastern states to remove heavy commercial traffic from Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, and Khadar and increase the efficiency of freight, reduce logistics costs and run socio-economic development in the region. The project alignment integrates three major national highways (NH-55, NH-57, and NH-655) and a state highway (SH-65), which provides spontaneous connectivity for major economic, social and logistics nodes in Odisha. Additionally, the corridor will connect two major ports at Korda railway station, Bhubaneswar Airport, Puri and Astrang, said PIB release.
The existing Kota Airport owe the airport to the Authority (AAI) of the Airport, has a 1.2 km long runway which is suitable for codes ‘B’ aircraft such as Turboprop Dornier 228. The terminal building spreads over an area of 400 sqm and is capable of handling 50 passengers during peak hours. The release states that the existing airport cannot be developed for commercial operations due to the availability and urbanization of insufficient land.
In the ink, a tripartite MoU was put up in July 2024 between the airports of India, the Urban Development Department and the Civil Aviation Department regarding the development of the Kota Greenfield Airport.
The land allotted for the airport is located in the Bundi district within the periphery of the Kota Development Authority. Of this, 406.678 hectares of forest land and 33.408 hectares are owned by non-one-one land quota development authority.
