Northeast set to give boost to air connectivity at a cost of Rs 1,232 Cr
Guwahati, January 29: Assam got the new integrated terminal building of Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (LGBI) airport aiming to boost air connectivity in North East. Union Minister for Civil Aviation P Ashok Gajapathi Raju and Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal laid the foundation stone.
To be developed at a cost of Rs 1,232 Crores, the new terminal building will conform to GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) 4-star rating. It will have 64 check-in counters, 20 self-check-in kiosks, eight immigration counters, eight customs counters, six arrival carousels, ten escalators, a travellator, 25 elevators, 16 self-baggage drop counters and 20 aircraft parking bays, among others.
Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju in his address lauded the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for the initiative and said that during the last three years of the NDA government, the civil aviation sector recorded the fastest growth, both internationally and domestically.
“From not being even in the reckoning, we have become the fastest growing aviation in the world and the third nation in the world in domestic traffic. Till the time the NDA government came to power, only 73 airports in the country had commercial flight connectivity. But within three-and-a-half years, 18 more airports have already started functioning under the present government,” he said.
Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said both the Central and State governments would work as a team to make great developmental strides in all spheres in the country. “Governments have to work as a team. When the State governments and the Centre work together, nothing can stop India’s progress,” he added.
Emanating confidence that the new initiative would the help in realisation of the growth potential of the State and forging better economic ties with the Southeast Asian nations, Chief Minister Sonowal said that transportation and connectivity were the two most important means for economic prosperity.
“The Government of Assam accords top priority to improve communication and engages in faster development of road, rail and air linkages besides internet connectivity. With better connectivity, Assam will have greater opportunity to connect with the ten ASEAN countries and other Southeast Asian nations. We have 800 million people in and around us in the southeast. This is a great market and through implementation of the Act East Policy, we want to take the development forward,” he observed.
Further he also requested the Union Minister to take appropriate measures for transforming the LGBI airport as an ‘all-weather friendly airport’ so that flights could take off and land in a hassle-free manner throughout the year.