Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Shivamogga airport in poll-bound Karnataka amid a huge crowd and the presence of several state and union ministers like Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai, former CM B.S Yediyurappa and Prahlad Joshi amongst others. This is a dream project for the former chief minister of the state, BS Yediyurappa. The Shivamogga airport is built under UDAN(Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagarik) scheme by the central government. Prior to the inauguration PM Modi inspected the model of Karnataka’s Shivamogga Airport that will be inaugurated by him today.
Shivamogga airport: Cost, capacity and more
The airport, which is named after Jnanpith award recipient poet and writer Kuvempu can handle around 300 passengers per hour. The Shivamogga airport was constructed at a cost of around Rs 449 crore was spent on the airport’s infrastructure. The Passenger Terminal Building of the airport can handle 7,200 Passengers on a daily basis.
The airport at Shivamogga is the 9th airport in Karnataka and will have the longest runway after Kempegowda International Airport in Bangalore. The state has seven domestic airports. These include those in Bengaluru, Ballari, Belagavi, Kalaburagi and Mysuru. Both the international airports of the state are located in Mangaluru and Bengaluru.
According to the government the airport will help improve connectivity in Shivamogga and other nearby areas.
During his one-day visit to Karnataka, the prime minister will also launch various projects in the state. Some of these include smart cities, railways, roads, and water connectivity projects.
The railway station at Belagavi will be officially opened by the prime minister. He is also scheduled to hold a public rally. Security has been beefed up in the area.