Shimoga airport ready by July 20, flights from August 11: Minister MB Patil

BENGALURU: The Shimoga airport is likely to become operational from August 11, before which all necessary arrangements will be made by July 20, Minister for Large Industries and Infrastructure Development MB Patil said on Thursday.

He said this while holding a meeting and instructing the officials concerned about the progress of the new airports in the state and other issues.

Ambulance and other necessary vehicles need to be assigned to Shimoga Airport. There is also work to be done in relation to starting a coffee cafe. In addition, recruitment of some technical and non-technical staff is to be done. He explained that all these will be completed by July 20 and the airport will be ready for operation.

The Central Directorate of Civil Aviation has entrusted the operation and maintenance of the station here to the Karnataka State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (KSIIDC). With this, Shimoga station will be the first airport in Karnataka to be run by a state government agency, Patil said.

Over 20 planes has landed at Shimoga Airport during assembly election campaign. He said that this has resulted in an income of Rs 12 lakh.

The station will be operational on August 11 and the first flight will take place on that day. Political leaders and representatives of the district will also attend to witness this historic event. If everything goes according to plan, the flight departing from Bangalore on August 11 will land at Shimoga station, he said.

Vijayapura Airport: Notification for Night Landing Arrangement

At the same time, Minister Patil expressed his displeasure over the non-arrangement of the night landing facility at the under construction Vijayapur airport and directed the officials to take immediate action to provide that facility as well.

The night landing facility was not included in the original plan of this station. An additional Rs 12 crore is required to make arrangements for this facility. About Rs 350 crore has been spent so far. The runway has been completed and all the work related to the construction will be completed in three months. He said that only the installation of some equipment is pending.

He reviewed the work progress of Hassan, Raichur and Karwar airports under construction. He also discussed the construction of Dharmasthala, Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru airstrips announced in the state budget.

Additional Chief Secretary, Infrastructure Development Department Gaurav Gupta, KSIIDC Founder Director MR Ravi and Executive Director Prakash were present on the occasion.