Prabhu, Nitish lay foundation stone for Darbhanga airport civil enclave

Mumbai: Civil aviation minister Suresh Prabhu along with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar Monday laid the foundation stone for the construction of an interim terminal building at Darbhanga airport, a release said.

The new civil enclave at defence ministry-run Dharbhanga airport is being developed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) at an investment of about Rs 92 crore, as per the release.

The terminal building, which would have porta cabins, will have six check in counters with peak hour handling capacity of 200 passengers, it said.

The government plans to operate flight services from Darbhanga to Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru under its regional connectivity scheme, UDAN, the AAI said in the release.

The airport has a runway length of 9,000 ft and can handle bigger aircraft such as Airbus 321s.

The Indian Air Force has provided the land on lease for the construction of an interim terminal building till the completion of permanent civil enclave by AAI on the land to be provided by the state government, the release stated.

The new civil enclave will play a significant role in enhancing connectivity in the state and give an impetus to the economic growth of the region, the release added.