First phase of Jewar airport gets government nod

Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Saturday said approval for the first phase of Jewar airport in western Uttar Pradesh has been granted.

According to the Civil Aviation Ministry, site clearance for the first phase of the airport at Jewar in Greater Noida is envisaged to be completed in five years.

Elaborating on the project, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said the first phase of the airport - Noida International Airport - is expected to cost Rs 10,000 crore.

The airport project was first conceived during the regime of Rajnath Singh as chief minister in 2001 and given shape in 2002 by the next CM Mayawati. With both the state and the Centre being ruled by the BJP, leaders had expressed willingness to pursue it together for the first time.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had expressed an interest in reviving the project during a review meeting of the Uttar Pradesh Infrastructure and Industrial Development Department following which the state government sent a fresh reminder to Raju, promising full cooperation.

The state government also wants Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Lucknow and Allahabad airports connected to the Centre's UDAN scheme.

3,000 hectares of land, required for the airport project, has been notified by the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority.

The airport project has been revived and shelved multiple times during the previous SP and BSP governments citing various reasons.