Noida International Airport, the upcoming greenfield airport at Jewar in Uttar Pradesh, has received a major boost in the state budget for 2024-25. The UP government has allocated Rs 1,150 crore for the construction work of the airport, which is expected to be operational by September 2024 .
India’s Largest Airport
Noida International Airport will be India’s largest airport upon completion, with five runways and an annual passenger capacity of 70 million. The airport will be developed in four phases, with two interconnected terminals and a cargo hub .
The first phase of the airport, spread over 1,334 hectare, will have one runway and a terminal that will cater to domestic and international passengers. The first phase for 12 million passengers per annum is to be completed by September 2024, as per the concession agreement .
The second phase of the airport, planned in an area of 1,365 hectare, will have another runway and terminal building. The second phase will start once the airport reaches 80 per cent of the 12 million passengers per year capacity. Similarly, the development of the third, fourth and fifth runways will begin when footfall increases from 12 million to 30 million, 50 million and 70 million respectively .
Progress and Challenges
The work on the first phase of the Noida Airport is complete by nearly 25 per cent. Tata Projects, which is the contractor for the project, has been carrying out the construction of the terminal building, runway and air traffic control (ATC) in full swing. At present, the concreting work of the terminal piers is continuing, even as the land for the runway is being levelled .
The project is being personally monitored by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who has asked the project developers to speed up the airport work by increasing the number of staff and machines .
However, the project also faces some challenges such as land acquisition for the subsequent phases and environmental clearance for the fifth runway. The state government has approved the land acquisition proposal for the third runway and is currently undertaking survey work across six villages in Greater Noida . The environmental clearance for the fifth runway is pending with the Centre .
Benefits and Opportunities
The Noida Airport will enhance domestic as well as international connectivity to and from Delhi-NCR, Noida and Western Uttar Pradesh. The airport will also boost tourism, trade and industrial development in the region .
The airport will also create employment opportunities for thousands of people directly and indirectly. The airport is expected to generate over one lakh direct and indirect jobs by 2025 .
The airport will also be connected to Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport by a rapid rail corridor that has been approved by the state government at a cost of Rs 16,000 crore. The rail corridor will reduce the travel time between the two airports to 80 minutes .