Akhilesh Yadav plans an airstrip with a VIP lounge in wife Dimple’s constituency

The land is spread across six villages of Rasulabad tehsil, which are Marhamtabad, Baranpur Kahinjari, Bhevan, Kashipur Purva and Paschim and Kashipur Madhya villages. Out of 115 hectare required for the project, about 27 hectare gram sabha land is already available with the government, while the rest about 88 hectare land has to be purchased.

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Government has estimated about Rs 56 lakh per hectare rate for the purchase of land, but Divisional Commissioner, Kanpur has been authorised to finalise the actual rate with mutual consent from farmers.

Sources inform that as per the proposal, government plans to construct about 3 km-long airstrip with a VIP lounge, which, if need be, can be expanded into a functional airport. A detailed project report has already been prepared by the State Civil Aviation Department.

“As per the government policy, we are going to directly purchase the land from the farmers and about Rs 50 crore for the same has been sanctioned for Kanpur Dehat district administration. We are optimistic that by August end or September, we shall be able to complete the purchase of land and start the work on site,” said Devendra Swaroop, Director, State Civil Aviation Department.

The proposed airstrip would be at a distance of about 145 km from Chaudhary Charan Singh Airport in Lucknow and about 90 km from existing Chakeri Airport in Kanpur, which is an airforce base with a civil terminal and comes under Ministry of Defence. The Airports Authority of India is already in the process of expanding the existing civil terminal at Chakeri Airport.

A senior government officer claimed that there was a long pending proposal from Kanpur Dehat district administration to develop an airport and considering that proposal, Akhilesh government has first decided to develop the airstrip. Sources inform that earlier, government had planned to propose an international airport near

Kanpur, but fearing objections by Ministry of Defence, it decided to instead develop the airstrip in Rasulabad.
Meanwhile, the state government is still waiting for the long pending clearance to develop an international airport near Agra. Recently, Akhilesh had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the international airport.