Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao who have been striving to get projects for the Telangana state has succeeded in getting a green field airport for the state. While a second airport proposal for Hyderabad is yet to be cleared by the centre, the state has got the clearance for a green field airport in Kothagudem. The idea of the chief Minister was to have an airport around Medak district that is on the other side of the Hyderabad Airport.
The Steering Committee on Greenfield Airports headed by the Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, gave ‘in principle’ approval to three new airport projects in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
The Steering Committee has also recommended ‘site clearance’ for the new greenfield airport project at Kothagudem in Telangana. With this, Telangana would get a second greenfield airport besides the Hyderabad International airport.
These clearances are expected to enhance the aviation infrastructure in the two States and will boost the Regional Connectivity Scheme recently announced by the Narendra Modi Government.
These are Bhogapuram and Dagadarthi (Nellore) and Orvakallu (Kurnool).
The new international airport at Bhogapuram will be developed by the State Government under the PPP (public-private partnership) mode at an estimated cost of Rs. 2,200 crore to cater to 6.3 million passengers per annum in the initial phase.
The other two airports in Andhra Pradesh will be developed as domestic no-frills airports with an estimated cost of Rs. 88 crore each.
Dagadarthi will be developed under the PPP mode whereas the project at Orvakallu will be developed by the State Government itself.
