Shirur MP to raise Khed airport relocation in Parliament

PUNE: Unhappy about Khed not being chosen as the airport site, Shirur MP

Shivaji Adhalrao Patil

said he will raise the issue in the winter session of Parliament.

Patil, who recently said technical reasons highlighted by the

Airports Authority of India

(AAI) had blown away Khed’s chances, told TOI that he will will highlight the advantages of re-locating the project to Khed.

“The winter session will start from November 16 and will continue for a month. Khed is a much better site as the airport at Purandar will result in heavy losses to the state government,” Patil said.

The AAI, after a survey of Khed, had said the place was suitable for a single runway. Since then, Patil has been trying to push the state government to make the new Pune airport a single runway system.

The Shiv Sena leader said a two-runway facility for Pune was not required and if the airport will come up at Purandar, air and passenger traffic will be hit.

His words have not been taken kindly by Purandar MLA and Shiv Sena leader Vijay Shivtare who said Patil was trying hard to save his face as it was because of him that Khed lost the airport.

“While in Delhi, I will meet AAI and Director General of Civil Aviation officials. I met former civil aviation minister

Praful Patel

and have his support. I have written to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis about the many advantages of Khed. I will meet him again next week,” Patil said.

His views of a single runway have been trashed by aviation experts. In earlier talks with TOI, Dhairyashil Vandekar, an aviation expert and analyst, said Pune is set to grow and the new airport needs two runways.

The proposed airport for Pune will be spread over 2,400 hectare and have two airstrips, each 4km long to handle cargo and passenger traffic.