Stray cat runs loose inside airport terminal

PUNE: Many flyers have expressed amusement as well as concern over a stray cat that has been spotted roaming around on the Lohegaon airport premises.
Passengers have asked officials to take action. Devdatta Tengshe saw it on Sunday afternoon and posted a photo, tweeting: “There is a stray cat at Pune Airport. Wonder what security check it went through? Cat-Scan?”


Another flyer, Ramesh Mirakhur, observed on February 11: “The AAI and the CISF are okay with cats roaming at the departure lounge.” The tweet was marked to Union minister of state for civil aviation, Jayant Sinha.

Airport sources said the cat has been around for nearly two weeks. “It appears out of nowhere. Though it doesn’t create a problem, a stray loose in the airport doesn’t look good,” said a ground staffer of an airline.

“It is possible that the cat is coming to the area for food, which means there is a garbage dump somewhere nearby. This is very risky for flights and passengers,” an airline official said.

The airport has often faced an animal problem. Recently, a pet dog had escaped from a flight at the airport.

Senior airport officials did not respond to SMS queries, while civic health officials claimed ignorance, saying they had yet to be informed of this issue by AAI. “They could have informed the ward office,” said Vaishali Jadhav, an civic veterinary official.