Upgradation of 35 airports to complete by mid-2010

New Delhi, July 25 (UNI) The upgradation of 35 airports in non-metro cities currently underway will be completed by mid-2010, secretary at the civil aviation ministry Ashok Chawla said today.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has finalised air-side plans for 24 of them, he said while addressing a seminar here.

The city-side development of these non-metro airports will be done through public private partnership and efforts will be made to maximise non-aeronautical revenues, said Mr Chawla.

The 35 non-metro airports approved for development are spread from extreme south (Thiruvananthapuram) to north (Jammu) and extreme east (Imphal) to west (Rajkot). The land area of these airports ranges from 15 to 1,500 acres.

''They'll serve as triggers of economic activity across the country,'' said Mr Chawla. ''Aspirations of air travellers are rising fast and airports need to be upgraded to international standards. We don't have the luxury of time.'' The government is also considering plans to allow merchant (private) airports for low-cost airlines. Private sector could be allowed to develop these with 100 per cent foreign direct investment in areas with high air traffic, said Mr Chawla.

India expects 400 million fliers a year by 2020, up from 96 million a year now. Top of the 141 airports account for over 70 per cent of air traffic.

But these airports have limited terminal capacity, outdated infrastructure, inadequate ground handling systems and poor passenger amenities which lead to frequent congestions.

UNI