India's Mega Projects! Noida To Soon Have Country's Largest Airport?

The National Capital Region in the country is all set to get India's largest and Asia's second-largest airport after the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YIEDA) signed all official formalities and gave its approval to the Master Plan of Jewar International Airport. YIEDA was one of the last official authorities who signed the proposal. Prior approvals were taken from various other agencies like the Airports Authority of India (AAI), the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation, the Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL), and the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Plan Of Making UP Atma Nirbhar

The Jewar International Airport would lie in the jurisdiction of Uttar Pradesh, and the government has set aside a whopping ₹2,000 crore for it. The state's Finance Minister Suresh Khanna presented the state budget of ₹5.50 lakh crore to make the state "Atma Nirbhar" and ensure overall development. According to India.com, Finance Minister Khanna said, "A budget of ₹ 2,000 crore has been proposed for the Noida International Greenfield Airport in Gautam Buddh Nagar's Jewar. The airport is expected to go operational by 2023".

Apart from the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government, Switzerland is keen on the developing the grand airport. The Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL) is a 100 per cent subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG and has been incorporated as a particular purpose vehicle (SPV) to develop the greenfield Noida International Airport (NIA), also popularly known as the Jewar Airport. YIAPL said that initially only two runways have been approved for the Jewar Airport , but the Uttar Pradesh government wants the facility to have six runways instead.

The master plan has taken into account the four-phase development of the airport project, under which the first phase will see 12 million passenger capacity annually. In contrast, in the fourth phase it is expected to increase to 70 million. Chief Executive Officer of YIAPL, Christoph Schnellmann, said, "The approval of the master plan is a pivotal milestone, as it paves the way for the development of Noida International Airport for the next 40 years". He further added that the plan reflects the goals and objectives set by the authorities and provides cost-effective and commercially viable solutions. Moreover, the authorities want to keep a focus centered around passenger convenience.

The Estimated Cost Of The Airport Is ₹29,560 Crore

One of India's mega-projects, the Jewar Airport, is expected to be built by the Swiss Airport company at an estimated cost of ₹29,560 crore. The Zurich International Airport signed a deal with the State Bank of India (SBI) to receive a loan amount of ₹3,725 crore to build Jewar Airport. The debt is to be repaid in 20 years, with a one-year moratorium after completing the project. The upcoming airport is touted to be the biggest airport in India after its completion. The new airport is likely to come as a lease of positivism that NOIDA desperately needs amidst the insolvency crises of significant companies like Unitech and Jaypee.

Jewar Airport would help travellers from Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring Rajasthan while planning their air travels. The Ministry of Aviation expects that the airport project would give the right boost to the tourism and economic potential of the region.

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