Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone in the virtual mode for the construction of a new terminal building at Kadapa airport on March 10 (Sunday).
The event was organised by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to initiate development works in 14 airports across the country, in which Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister S.B. Amzath Basha, Member of Parliament Y.S. Avinash Reddy, Rajya Sabha member C.M. Ramesh, Kamalapuram MLA P. Ravindranath Reddy and Collector V. Vijayarama Raju participated from Kadapa.
The airport was utilised by 70,000 air passengers during the 2022-23 financial year and the current proactive step is in tune with the projected rise in the figures. The new terminal building is coming up in 16455 sq.m area, with a peak hour serving capacity of 1,800 (25 lakh per annum). The facility will have two check-in counters, two conveyor belts, three scanning equipment, three aero-bridges and a parking lot with a capacity to accommodate 375 cars.
Mr. Basha said the step would improve air services to Kadapa and bring it within reach of more travellers. “Kadapa airport has been waiting for such a development for long. The Central government has come forward to spend ₹266 crore on the project,” he said, adding that the facility would aid the progress in view of the presence of a long industrial corridor abutting the airport.
Mr. Avinash Reddy lauded the district administration for fast-tracking the process of getting forest and other clearances mandated by the AAI. He recalled that the State government had come forward to meet the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) to ensure uninterrupted services from Kadapa airport.
Collector V. Vijayarama Raju said that the Kadapa-Bengaluru, Kadapa-Tirupati and Kadapa-Nellore highways would be widened to ensure better connectivity to the airport.
