Major Indian cities to get a second airport in response to growth in air travel

Travellers might get an additional option when it comes to flying as talks are on for a second airport in all the major cities in India. According to latest reports, the Civil Aviation Ministry is planning to build a second airport in all major Indian cities.
Guruprasad Mohapatra, Chairman, Airports Authority of India (AAI), has raised concerns regarding the rising demand for air travel in the country, and has pointed out the importance for a second airport in Indian cities. Currently, AAI is operating 125 airports, including 11 international aerodromes. But the main problem being faced in this regard is land acquisition, as Mohapatra rightly points out that the construction of an airport requires at least 2,000 ac of land. He said that AAI along with the Ministry of Civil Aviation, has been writing to state governments to reserve land for a second airport.


Both Mumbai and Delhi are ready to get a second airport, while Visakhapatnam, Kolkata, Chennai, and Pune, among other cities are also in talks.
While traffic in the month of April was negative due to the Jet Airways crisis, India is still one of the fastest growing domestic aviation markets in the world. In April, airports handled 26.70 million passengers, and 2,75,150 tonnes of freight. According to reports, India and China will account for almost half of the world’s air passenger growth in the next two decades. In such a promising future, major Indian cities would definitely require second airports.