Pune international airport project unlikely to take off this year

“All other projects in Pune are seeing some progress but the airport project is just not taking off due to land issue. The two sites at Khed and Rajgurunagar where the Airport Authority of India conducted a detailed survey are being opposed by farmers. Unless there is some progress, we cannot take the project forward. The two meetings held on the issue turned out to be inconclusive,’’ said officials.

With just over four months left for the year to end, the Maharashtra Airport Development Company is hopeful that a solution is arrived at soon. “Though we are scouting for other sites, Khed and Rajgurunagar would have been ideal as they have been studied in detail by the Airport Authority of India. If we come up with a new site, the process will be delayed as the authority will have to seek clearances and conduct a survey afresh,” said officials.

[related-post]

From the time the project was announced, the meetings and discussions held to finalise the site have only turned out be inconclusive. The previous government had almost finalised a site and the executing agency MADC had received Rs 200 crore for the first phase. However, the project could not be taken forward owing to the opposition from the villagers.

Officials said, as per the proposal, the airport project would require 1,200 hectares. Since the government had said it will not acquire agriculture land, it had to scout for suitable locations. The new international airport was believed to reduce the burden on the defence airport at Lohegaon as well as have better connectivity to all the areas in the state, other states and abroad.

While the first site shortlisted near Chakan was interfering with the operations of the IAF, farmers were opposed to the one near Rajgurunagar as it involved acquisition of agriculture land. The site near Khed required Baba Kalyani, Chairman, Bharat Forge, to agree to part with nearly half the land acquired under the SEZ project being developed by the Kalyani Group.