Lok Sabha Question No. 1689 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-12-05
Subject: Expansion of existing Airports
Ministry: CIVIL AVIATION
Asked by: Dr. M P Abdussamad Samadani, Shri Hibi Eden, Shri Rajesh Ranjan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 1689 (To be answered on the 5 th  December 2024)

## EXPANSION OF EXISTING AIRPORTS

## 1689. DR. M P ABDUSSAMAD SAMADANI

SHRI HIBI EDEN

SHRI RAJESH RANJAN

Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION

be pleased to state:-

- (a) whether the Government has fixed specific timelines for the expansion of existing airports and the construction of new airports and if so, the details
- thereof;
- (b) the measures being implemented to address potential challenges related to air traffic congestion and airport capacity in view of anticipated growth in domestic passengers by 2030; and
- (c) the provisions in place to monitor the effective implementation of the airport expansion plans to ensure that the projected passenger growth targets are met by 2030?

## ANSWER

Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION

(Shri Murlidhar Mohol)

- (a) & (b): The expansion and modernisation of airports is a continuous process and is undertaken by Airports Authority of India (AAI) and other Airport Operators from time to time depending on the availability of land, commercial viability, socio-economic considerations, traffic demand and willingness of airlines to operate to/from such airports. To address the anticipated growth in air traffic, AAI and other Airport Operators have targeted capital outlay of more than Rs. 91,000 crore in the airport sector during 2019-24 under National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) for construction of Greenfield Airports and new terminals, expansion and modernisation of existing terminals and strengthening of runways, among other activities.

The Government of India (GoI) has accorded 'In-Principle' approval for setting up of 21 new Greenfield Airports namely, Mopa in Goa, Navi Mumbai, Shirdi and Sindhudurg in Maharashtra, Kalaburagi, Vijayapura, Hassan and

Shivamogga in Karnataka, Dabra (Gwalior) in Madhya Pradesh, Kushinagar and Noida (Jewar) in Uttar Pradesh, Dholera and Hirasar in Gujarat, Karaikal in Puducherry, Dagadarthi, Bhogapuram and Orvakal (Kurnool) in Andhra Pradesh, Durgapur in West Bengal, Pakyong in Sikkim, Kannur in Kerala and Hollongi (Itanagar) in Arunachal Pradesh across the country. Out of these, 12 Greenfield airports viz. Durgapur, Shirdi, Kannur, Pakyong, Kalaburagi, Orvakal (Kurnool), Sindhudurg, Kushinagar, Itanagar, Mopa, Shivamogga and Hirasar (Rajkot) have been operationalised. The total number of operational airports in the country has risen to 158, with a combined capacity to handle over 530 million passengers per annum (MPPA), compared to an actual footfall of 220 million passengers in the financial year

2023-24. Additionally, Regional Connectivity Scheme - Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (RCS-UDAN) also aims for revival and development of un-served and underserved airports/ heliports/ water aerodromes of State Government, AAI, Civil Enclaves, CPSUs for operations of the UDAN flights. An airport which is i n c l u d e d i n   t h e   awarded  routes  of  UDAN  and  requires upgradation/development  for  commencement  of  UDAN  operations,  is developed under 'Revival of unserved and underserved airports' scheme. Under RCS-UDAN, 87 unserved/underserved airports including 2 Water Aerodromes & 13 Heliports have been developed/operationalised. The timelines for construction of airports depends upon various factors such as land acquisition, mandatory clearances, removal of obstacles, financial closure etc. by the respective airport developers. In order to reduce traffic congestion, AAI has introduced five (05) NM surveillance based horizontal separation in the airspace with surveillance coverage in India w.e.f. 01-01-2024, contributing to enhancing the airspace capacity.  In  addition,  AAI  has  established  Central  Air  Traffic  Flow Management (ATFM) unit in Delhi with Flow Management Position Pan India. ATFM monitors the traffic at different airports in India. Further, in whichever airport, it is anticipated that there is demand and capacity imbalance, ATFM unit takes action to resolve the situation by applying flow measures.  The  ATFM system is continuously being upgraded to meet challenges  that  are  coming    up  with  the  air  traffic  growth. (c): To ensure timely implementation of airport expansion and modernisation plans, regular monitoring is conducted at various levels by the Ministry of Civil Aviation in coordination with stakeholders. Progress of upgradation works and removal of bottlenecks are systematically tracked to avoid delays.

- *****