India's busiest airports will outgrow their capacities this year
According to the documents accessed by the Hindustan Times through the RTI act, at least 25 of India's busiest airports are operating beyond capacity, while the rest will reach their optimal capacity in 2018-19. This harsh truth, which comes on the back of unprecedented growth in the Indian civil aviation industry, holds not only for government-run airports but also for privately-run airports. Here's more.
All major airports to become clogged this year
While some major airports like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Pune are already operating beyond their capacities, other important ones like Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Goa, and Lucknow are set to surpass their capacities by the end of this year. Meanwhile, experts say that despite official figures, all these airports already operate beyond capacity during peak hours, leading to long queues, lax security, and flight delays.
The Indian civil aviation market
According to India's civil aviation ministry, the aviation industry in India has seen the highest growth in the world in the last four years, and, as of 2018, is already the world's third largest civil aviation market after China and the US.
So, what's the government doing about the overcrowded airports?
So, what's the government doing about it? On May 2, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the upgradation of integrated terminals in Chennai, Guwahati, and Lucknow by the Airports Authority of India at estimated costs of Rs. 2,467cr, Rs. 1,232cr, and Rs. 1,383cr respectively. Meanwhile, civil aviation minister Jayant Sinha had earlier said that Rs. 1 lakh crore would be invested for airport expansion.
The NABH Nirman initiative
The government has also launched a new initiative called NABH (NextGen Airports for Bharat) Nirman which seeks to expand airport capacities by five times to one billion trips in the next 10-15 years.
Details of the expansion plans for airports
Over the next 4-5 years, the Airports Authority of India is also in the process of expanding the capacities of several airports including Pune, Jaipur, Goa, Varanasi, among others at a cost of Rs. 20,178cr. Meanwhile, the privately-run Delhi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad airports will require investments of over Rs. 25,000cr over the next 4-5 years. Expansion in Delhi is expected to be completed by 2021.
Passengers should expect congestion for next few years
However, despite the government's plans, experts are of the opinion that the action has come far too late, and passengers should expect difficulties in the next 3-4 years. Infrastructural expansion which should have been planned years ago is being undertaken now when the situation has reached an alarming stage. Meanwhile, new tech like biometric access, self-check-in, etc. needs to be introduced to reduce congestion.
