Despite the various proposals submitted by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), the expansion of the Calicut international airport has been remaining on paper for quite some time with both the State and Union governments not taking any proactive steps.
Sources said the AAI had requested the State government to acquire 248 acres of land for the expansion of the runway and for the construction of a new terminal. However, after several rounds of discussions at the State-level it was decided to acquire 135 acres for filling the terrain so as to extend the table-top runway from its existing length of 2,700 metres. The AAI had requested the government to acquire another 15.2 acres for vehicle parking.
Razing of hills
The AAI had also come up with a commitment of ₹1,000 crore for the airport’s expansion. Subsequently, the government asked the Collectors of Malappuram and Kozhikode districts to identify hills in these districts to be razed for land-filling purpose.
Proposed meetings between top officials, including former AAI Chairman Guruprasad Mohapatra, with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the then Chief Secretary Tom Jose last July failed to materialise.
Difficult terrain
The expansion plans were put on hold indefinitely because of the difficult terrain, prone to landslip and floods, and the huge cost that would entail in razing hills and filling land.
The airport, located on 380 acres, had been the embarkation point for Haj pilgrims from Kerala and Lakshadweep till 2014 when the Ministry of Civil Aviation shifted the embarkation point to Kochi, following which the airport was partially closed from June 1, 2015 to March 1, 2017 to strengthen and re-carpet the runway.
In 2018
The airport had been crying out for development even when the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) succumbed to political pressure to allow three major airlines — Air India, Saudia (Saudi Arabian Airlines) and the Dubai-based Emirates — to resume the operation of widebodied aircraft, with multiple conditions in 2018.
Only Saudia restored flights from December 2019 after carrying out a study and submitted a safety assessment and risk mitigation plan.
Air India followed suit, but Emirates is yet to take a final call.
