'Built in 2009...': Centre's reply to opposition after airport accident
A portion of the roof at Terminal-1 of Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport collapsed during heavy rain on Friday, resulting in one fatality and six injuries. The incident has now triggered a blame game between the Congress and the Centre, with the former alleging that the affected terminal was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March. Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu refuted this claim, stating it was built in 2009 when the Congress was in power.
Visuals of the roof collapse
Affected passengers will get full refund
Kinjarapu, who visited the site of the collapse, told reporters, "I want to clarify that the building inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on the other side, and the building that collapsed here is an old building and was opened in 2009." The Civil Aviation minister also stated that they are taking the situation "seriously" and that travelers whose flights have been cancelled will receive a full refund.
Political controversy erupts over terminal collapse
In addition, a nationwide audit would be conducted, he announced. A compensation of ₹20 lakh has also been announced for the deceased and ₹3 lakh for the injured. Government sources told NDTV that the collapsed canopy was built in 2008-09 by private contractors hired by GMR. Several opposition leaders, including Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh, alleged that the terminal was inaugurated by PM Modi shortly after the accident.
Check out Kharge's charge here
Terminal 1 operations suspended
As of now, all flights to and from Terminal-1 remain suspended until 2:00pm. However, operations in Terminal-2 and Terminal-3 remained unaffected. According to reports, the airport operator intends to temporarily transfer operations from T1 to T2 and T3. T1 only provides domestic airline operations. Between 2:30am and 5:30am, Delhi experienced 150 mm of rain in three hours, making it one of the wettest spells of the year.
