Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new Integrated Terminal Building at Veer Savarkar International Airport at Port Blair in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on July 18.
The inauguration of the New Integrated Terminal Building, built at a cost of around Rs 710 crores, will boost connectivity of the island. With a total built up area of around 40,800 sq m, the new terminal building will be capable of handling about 50 lakh passengers annually.
An Apron suitable for two Boeing-767-400 and two Airbus-321 types of aircraft has also been constructed at Port Blair Airport at a cost of Rs 80 crore, making the airport now suitable for parking of ten aircrafts at a time.
Earlier, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia unveiled a statue of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in Port Blair.
He said Veer Savarkar International Airport has connectivity with Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam and will be further expanded.
Rajiv Bansal, Secretary in Ministry of Civil Aviation, termed the occasion a “golden day” for the people of Port Blair.
"Today is a golden day for the people of Port Blair as well as for the Ministry of Civilisation, as we are in readiness to inaugurate a brand-new terminal in Port Blair. This is a terminal which is having a capacity of handling 5 million passengers per annum, which is five times the capacity of the existing terminal. This is going to increase connectivity to Port Blair from various locations in India as well as abroad,” Bansal said.
He further said that this will be a huge convenience for passengers desirous of visiting the islands of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
“We are already connected to Calcutta, Vijaywada, Chennai and Delhi, and in the coming days and weeks, we'll see more airlines, more connectivity, and more routes flying into Port Blair. This will be a huge convenience for passengers desirous of visiting the beautiful islands of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. And also will provide convenience for the people of Port Blair because it will give them an economic boost as this island is primarily dependent on tourism income,” Bansal added.
(ANI)