Centre gives nod for airport in Mandi

The central government has given green signal for construction of airport in Mandi district, chief minister Jai Ram Thakur said after his meeting with Union minister for civil aviation, housing and urban affairs Hardeep Singh Puri at New Delhi on Wednesday.

Thakur said the upcoming airport will be constructed in a joint venture with Airport Authority of India (AAI) for which the authority will prepare a detailed project report (DPR) in a week while the state government will fast track the land acquisition process.

He also discussed about expansion of airports in the state and requested for exploring possibilities of landing of A320 aircraft at Gaggal and ATR74 aircraft in Shimla and Bhuntar airports without load bottlenecks. He requested for expansion of runways of existing airports which would not only provide good connectivity but also boost tourism in state, a state spokesperson said.

Thakur said the air ambulance services was needed to be strengthened in the state as it was facing problems due to existing terms and conditions. This was vital for the state due to its rough geographical conditions and rescuing tourists in inclement weather conditions, he added.

The Union minister assured of all possible assistance and agreed with the view of chief minister about long term planning, a state spokesperson said.

Chief secretary Shrikant Baldi was also present in the meeting.