Adani group seeks nod to acquire 16 acres for runway

Thiruvananthapuram: The Adani group, which is in charge of the operations, management and development of the Trivandrum International Airport, has sent a formal request to the chief minister seeking permission to acquire 16 acres for the development of the airport runway to attract more international airlines. The group has also expressed its willingness to provide adequate compensation for land acquisition.
The Chackai-Shangumugham Road passes through the proposed land and it has to be realigned, if the land is acquired. The Adani Group has informed the government that it was ready to take up the realignment works.
At present, bigger planes are not operating their services due to the shorter runway here. The runway here has a length of 3.1km, which is not enough for the safe landing of smaller and bigger flights as per the safety guidelines of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). However, exemption was given till December 31, 2023, by the DGCA with a directive to finish expansion of the runway in the meantime. As of now, 120 international and 110 domestic flights are operating per week through the airport. An expanded runway may be able to attract more flights, including jumbo airlines.
“Some portions of the runways are not usable for landing because of tall obstacles (titanium chimney and tall trees) obstructing the view of pilots. Cutting trees and reducing the height of the chimney were not pragmatic. But expanding the length of runway was an ideal solution for all the concerns,” said a report prepared by Trivandrum Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Another proposal seeking permission to acquire 18 acres of land near the airport for the expansion of the international terminal is also pending with the chief minister. This was sent even before Adani took over the management of the airport.
“If the state government provides us approval to acquire land, in eight months we can finish the works of runway expansion,” said sources in the Adani Group.
Runway expansion is expected to bring a huge revenue for the state government through cargo handling as well. The state-run Kerala State Industrial Enterprises Ltd (KSIE) is the managing agency and air cargo custodian of the air cargo terminal.
As per the data, KSIE received a revenue of nearly Rs 4 crore per year in 2019-20 and it came down to Rs 3.5 crore in 2020-21 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Once the runway is expanded, huge cargo airlines may express willingness to operate via Trivandrum airport. It will attract huge revenue for the cash-strapped state government,” said a KSIE officer.