The Durgapur Airport, part of the country?s first airport-cum-township project, will aim at foreign travellers who come for India?s Buddhist circuit in its base-level projection of 3-4 lakh passengers a year. The airport is expected to come up by 2010-11.
?The Bodh Gaya tourist traffic is definitely on our radar,? said a senior official of Bengal Aerotropolis Projects Ltd. The company is implementing Rs 10,000 crore project coming up over 2,300 acre.
Coming up in a heavy engineering hub that is also one of the largest affluent regions in India not served by an airport, the airport will serve a population of over 40 lakh within 50km.
Air traffic in the region in expected to grow by over 12% over the next three years and, according to a study by IMRB International, the overall premium travel segment in the region will grow by 5-12% during the period. While the long-distance travel potential is seen at 4.02 lakh a year, more than 1.84 lakh persons are likely to use air travel.
L&T Ramboll Consulting Engineers is conducting a techno-economic feasibility study based on the passenger traffic potential done by IMRB International. According to the IMRB study, premium travellers at Asansol, Durgapur and Dhanbad are highly affluent with over 50% having incomes over Rs 30,000 per month.
