With increasing traffic, city airport complaints on rise

NAGPUR: With increase in number of passengers passing through Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, the number of complaints - delay in flights, problems with new pay and park system, non-functioning of aerobridge or escalators, even basic facilities missing - too are on the rise.
As per the reports from ministry of civil aviation recently, of total 2,888 complaints received from various airports - including six-private run airports - across the country, Nagpur airport, run by Mihan India Limited (MIL), stood fourth with 170 complaints registered by passengers.
Delhi airport with 587 complaints tops the list while Hyderabad stood second with 236 complaints followed by Bangalore with 186 complaints. Sources at the airport informed that these were the unresolved complaints sent by MIL officials to Civil Aviation ministry, while most of others involving basic facilities were resolved by the authorities.
Mumbai and Kochi registered the lowest number of complaints with 32 and 34 complaints respectively. Of the AAI-run airports, Ranchi airport topped the list with 190 complaints followed by Madurai and Ahmadabad with 144 and 141 complaints. A total of 117 complaints were registered at Calicut airport and 112 at Jaipur, airport sources informed. In 2009 and 2010, 2,503 and 2,220 complaints were received by the ministry of civil aviation.
At city airport, most of the complaints registered by passengers or visitors were regarding parking booth posing obstruction on the approach road, parking contractor charging Rs 30 per vehicle, boards displayed at parking area about 'parking at your own risk',
inadequate luggage trolleys, poorly maintained toilets, missing luggage, etc, a senior MIL official informed.
Even, Gadchiroli MLA Namdeo Usendi had registered a complaint about that the VIP washroom meant for women had President's picture displayed on the entrance door while Prime Minister's picture on the men's washroom.
Some vigilant passengers has also registered complaints saying that the newly commissioner aerobridge was non-functional, while some had pointed out the threat to passengers' life following growing stray animal menace on the runway, said another official requesting anonymity.
Airport director and MIL CEO Vinod Kumar Yadava, however, clarified that most of the complaints pertaining to parking problems had already been resolved.
Those related to financial issues need to be resolved at the headquarter level and have been sent to ministry. Yadava said that he personally checked the complaints registered by passengers and tried to resolve them.
As of now, priority is being given to provide more facilities for airlines as well as passengers and visitors at airport, Yadava assured. Two public toilets on both sides of the approach road (just near parking stand) are also ready. "The contractor has been asked to start 'Pay and Use' facility besides a side snacks corner for the visitors," he added.
Nagpur airport is run by Mihan India Limited (MIL), a joint venture of Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) and Airports Authority of India (AAI).