The development of Odisha’s Puri International Airport got a new fillip as Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) has invited tenders for the first-phase development, operation, and maintenance of the proposed airport, officials privy to the matter mentioned.
Named as Sri Jagannath International Airport, it’ll be constructed near Puri’s Sipasarubali area, officials said. Further, the first phase entails work on public-private-partnership (PPP) mode for 4.6 million passengers per annum (mppa) capacity at an estimated cost of Rs 2,203 crore at an appropriate area of around 1,165 acres, the officials said.
Tender details
It is noteworthy that the eligible bidder will required to complete the construction work in 1,095 days and maintain it for seven years from the commencement of commercial operation. The official window to submit the tenders is scheduled between February 21 and April 20.
Proposed to primarily serve the Puri region, the closest airport to Puri is the Biju Patnaik Airport (IATA Code: BBI) in Bhubaneswar, situated around 64.6 kilometers away from the heritage city of Jagannath Puri.
In 2021, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to establish an international airport in Puri to promote Jagannath culture. Since then, Patnaik has consistently raised the issue with PM Modi, highlighting the significance of the proposed airport for the region.
Land acquisition in-process
In January last month, a government official mentioned that the process of land acquisition for the Sri Jagannath International Airport is on track and is anticipated to be completed within the next six months. The total cost of the airport is expected to be around Rs 5,631 crore.
Of the total land area, 68 acres are forest land, and 221.48 acres are privately owned in Sipasarubali and Sandhapur under the Brahmagiri tehsil. Until January 8, over 961 acres of land were acquired, with ongoing efforts to acquire the remaining 221.48 acres of private land.
“We will complete the land acquisition in the next 6 months,” an official mentioned who is involved in the land acquisition process. The private land required for the project includes 153.37 acres in Sipasarubali and 68.11 acres in Sandhapur. Plans for the rehabilitation and resettlement of locals are also underway.