Bidar Airport FINALLY got permission to launch civil aviation.

Hubballi-Ankola rail route gets green signal


The Union Ministry for Environment and Forests has given a clean chit to the pending Hubballi-Ankola railway line and instructed the Railways to take up the project soon, said the Minister for Basic Infrastructure Development and Information and Public Relation Roshan Baig on Monday.

The project was opposed as it was feared that it would affect natural forest areas and its biodiversity there.

A committee to study and survey the areas was set up under head scientist T.V. Ramachandran of Indian Institute of Science.

The Minister had come to Ankola to inaugurate a district minority conference held there. Hubballi –Ankola railway line will promote connectivity between north Karnataka and coastal line and would certainly boost exim (export and import), activities, he said.

The tender process was under progress to develop Tadadi and Belekeri ports in a public-private partnership model and a team has gone to Gujrat to study more about the model.

The airports at Hubballi and Kalaburagi will be developed as an aircraft base .

Permission has also been granted to launch civil aviation at Bidar airport which was mainly meant for defense services earlier, the Minister said.

Former MLA Umesh Bhat was present on the occasion.

Source:http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/hubballiankola-rail-route-gets-green-signal/article6674751.ece

Karnataka CM meets Civil Aviation Minister, discuss about airport projects

The Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah met Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju in New Delhi, today.

It is learnt that many long pending issues including Bidar Airport issue was discussed in the meeting.

CM is pursuing lifting objections to operate Bidar Airport located in northern tip of Karnataka,as there is some complications in the guidelines regarding the distance issue between Bidar and Hyderabad airports.

source: http://enarada.com/?p=14733

Govt to pay for four vacant seats on flights to tier II cities

:

GMR may be asked to operate Bidar civilian airport

The State government has proposed to pay for at least four vacant seats per aircraft plying within Karnataka. To encourage intra-state air traffic, the Infrastructure Development Department (IDD) will underwrite seats on routes which connect Bangalore with Bidar, Gulbarga, Mysore and Bijapur.

The decision, which has been warranted on account of low-cost airlines not showing interest to ply their services to tier-II cities, will be implemented once the infrastructure in these cities is ready for air traffic.

Minister for Infrastructure Development Roshan Baig told Deccan Herald that the government was busy resolving the crisis surrounding the various tier-II city airports.

“Once we resolve the crisis, we will begin talks with low-cost airlines to ply their services with the assistance of the government. Without the subsidies, it is not likely that these low cost airlines will come forth,” he said. Baig said that apart from underwriting seats, the government is planning to relax the norms for State government officials to fly to these destinations on official duty. With this relaxation in norms, even if an official is forced to cancel his or her seat, the airline does not lose revenue.

Baig said that the government proposes that GMR Constructions operate the Bidar civilian terminal. The terminal which was constructed by the State government in 2009, after having only taken an in-principle approval, has been closed due to rules and regulations of the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and the objection by GMR which runs the Hyderabad airport.

It is said that on account of Bidar falling within the 150-km radius of the flying zone of the Hyderabad international airport, it cannot operate independently.

The government, on account of resolving this technicality, has decided to hand over the operations of Bidar airport to GMR. The State government had spent Rs 5.5 crore to construct the Bidar terminal inside the defence air base after seeking permission from the IAF and Ministry of Defence.

With regard to the Gulbarga airport, the government has asked IL&FS to proceed with its construction with the dispute with the previous developer RAHI being resolved. It is expected that the airport construction and other allied facilities are completed by the end of the 2014-15 financial year

source:http://splashurl.com/o5g2p5f

Will there be enough takers for Bidar flights?

Passenger flights to and from Bidar from the Air Force base here has been a long-pending demand. The Defence Ministry has approved a request from the State government to use the base for civil aviation, and officials of the Airports Authority of India have visited it to inspect the facilities. The question now is: will there be enough passengers if civil aviation becomes a reality?

“Each flight will be full, no doubt,” says B.G. Shetkar, president of the Bidar Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He believes private operators who choose to fly in and out of Bidar will not suffer loss.

Referring to a study they conducted, Mr. Shetkar said the findings indicated that over 1,000 people travel between Bidar and Bangalore every day. At least 20 per cent of them could afford to pay airfare. Even on lean days, there would be at least 100 people who could travel by air, he said. According to him, over 200 people take the train from Bidar to Bangalore. Around 400 people travel by buses operated by four private companies, while another 100 use North Eastern Karnataka Transport Corporation buses. Over 300 people travel to Bangalore via Hyderabad or Gulbarga by plane, train or bus.

Besides, there would be those travelling to Mumbai or New Delhi on business, he said.

Other than business travellers, there were politicians, doctors, IT professionals and government employees from Bidar who have settled in Bangalore. Many of them could afford air travel, Mr. Shetkar added.

Lessons from Hubli

However, not everybody is buying this argument. There was no indication that there would be the necessary footfalls to ensure regular air connectivity, a senior government officer said.

Giving the example of what happened in Hubli after civil aviation was started there, he said operations along the Bangalore–Hubli route had to be cancelled or rescheduled several times, owing to lack of demand. As of now, there was nothing to say that the Bangalore–Bidar sector would be any different, he said.

But, a “hop and jump” system of operating flights could be explored for Bidar. Planes bound for Hyderabad could stop at Bidar, or flights to Hyderabad could be routed through here, he added.




source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/will-there-be-enough-takers-for-bidar-flights/article4169452.ece

ಬೀದರ್ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್‌ಗೆ ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳ ತಂಡ ಭೇಟಿ

ಬೀದರ್: ನಗರ ಹೊರವಲಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಚಿದ್ರಿ ಬಳಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣವಾಗಿರುವ ವೈಮಾನಿಕ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್‌ನ ಕಾರ್ಯಾರಂಭ ಕುರಿತಂತೆ ಸೋಮವಾರ ಭಾರತೀಯ ವಿಮಾನ ಪ್ರಾಧಿಕಾರ, ವಾಯುಪಡೆ, ಸರ್ಕಾರ ಮತ್ತು ಜಿಎಂಆರ್ ಪ್ರತಿನಿಧಿಗಳು ಜಂಟಿ ಸ್ಥಳ ವೀಕ್ಷಣೆ ಮಾಡಿ ಪರಿಶೀಲಿಸಿದರು. ಈ ಭೇಟಿಯ ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಗರದಲ್ಲಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣವಾಗಿರುವ ಏರ್‌ಪೋರ್ಟ್ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ಕಾರ್ಯಾರಂಭ ಮಾಡುವ ಕುರಿತ ನಿರೀಕ್ಷೆಗಳು ಮತ್ತೆ ಗರಿಗೆದರಿವೆ.

`ಸ್ಥಳ ಪರೀಶೀಲನೆ ಹಂತದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾವುದೇ ತಕರಾರು ವ್ಯಕ್ತವಾಗಿಲ್ಲ. ಜಿಎಂಆರ್ ಕಂಪನಿಯ ಪ್ರತಿನಿಧಿಗಳು ಸಂಸ್ಥೆಯ ನಿಲುವು ಕುರಿತು ವರದಿ ಸಲ್ಲಿಸುವ ವಾಗ್ದಾನ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದು, ವರದಿ ಬಂದ ಬಳಿಕ ಮುಂದಿನ ಸಾಧ್ಯತೆಗಳ ಬಗೆಗೆ ಚರ್ಚೆ ನಡೆಯಲಿದೆ` ಎಂದು ಪರಿಶೀಲನೆಯ ಬಳಿಕ ಜಿಲ್ಲಾಧಿಕಾರಿ ಡಾ. ಪಿ.ಸಿ.ಜಾಫರ್ ಅವರು ತಿಳಿಸಿದರು.
ಪ್ರಸ್ತುತ ಹೈದರಾಬಾದ್‌ನ ವಿಮಾನ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದ ನಿರ್ವಹಣೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿರುವ ಜಿಎಂಆರ್ ಸಂಸ್ಥೆಯು, ಹೈದರಾಬಾದ್ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದ 150 ಕಿ.ಮೀ. ಪರಿಧಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ಕಾರ್ಯಾರಂಭ ಮಾಡಬಾರದು ಎಂದು ಒಪ್ಪಂದ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಂಡಿದೆ ಎಂಬ ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬೀದರ್‌ನಲ್ಲಿ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣ ಮಾಡಿರುವ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ಕಾರ್ಯಾರಂಭ ನೆನೆಗುದಿಗೆ ಬಿದ್ದಿದೆ.

ವಿಮಾನ ಯಾನದ ಸಾಧ್ಯತೆಗಳು, ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಆಗಿರುವ ಪ್ರಗತಿ, ಸೌಲಭ್ಯಗಳು, ವಾಯುಯಾನದ ಒತ್ತಡ ಇತ್ಯಾದಿ ಅಂಶಗಳ ಬಗೆಗೆ ಪರಿಶೀಲನೆಯಾಗಿದೆ. ಈ ಹಂತದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾವುದೇ ತೀರ್ಮಾನ ಆಗಿಲ್ಲ. ಜಿಎಂಆರ್ ಸಂಸ್ಥೆಯ ವರದಿ ನಿರೀಕ್ಷೆ ಮಾಡಲಾಗುತ್ತಿದೆ ಎಂದರು.

ರಾಜ್ಯ ಮೂಲ ಸೌಕರ್ಯ ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿ ಇಲಾಖೆಯ ಪ್ರಧಾನ ಕಾರ್ಯದರ್ಶಿ ರಾಜಕುಮಾರ ಕತ್ರಿ, ಜಿಎಂಆರ್ ಕಂಪನಿಯ ಮುಖ್ಯ ಕಾರ್ಯ ನಿರ್ವಾಹಕ ಅಧಿಕಾರಿ ವಿಕ್ರಮ್ ಆರ್. ಸಿಂಘಾನಿಯಾ, ಕೇಂದ್ರ ರಕ್ಷಣಾಸಚಿವಾಲಯದ ನಿರ್ದೇಶಕಿ ಉಮಾ ನಂದೂರಿ, ಭಾರತೀಯ ವಿಮಾನ ಪ್ರಾಧಿಕಾರ ಮತ್ತು ವಾಯುಪಡೆಯ ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳು ಅವರು ಭೇಟಿ ನೀಡಿದ್ದರು.

ಜಿಲ್ಲಾಧಿಕಾರಿ ಡಾ. ಪಿ.ಸಿ.ಜಾಫರ್ ಅವರು ಈ ತಂಡಕ್ಕೆ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ಕುರಿತ ಮಾಹಿತಿ ಒದಗಿಸಿದರು. ಪೊಲೀಸ್ ವರಿಷ್ಟಾಧಿಕಾರಿ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜನ್, ಉಪ ವಿಭಾಗಾಧಿಕಾರಿ ಪ್ರಕಾಶ್ ನಿಟ್ಟಾಲಿ ಅವರೂ ಈ ಸಂದರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿ ಹಾಜರಿದ್ದರು.

ಸ್ವಚ್ಛವಾಗದ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ಆವರಣ: ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳ ತಂಡ ಭೇಟಿ ನೀಡುವ ಸಂದರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್‌ನ ಆವರಣವನ್ನು ಸ್ವಚ್ಛವಾಗಿಡುವ ಯತ್ನ ನಡೆದಿರುವುದು ಕಂಡುಬಂದಿತು.ಟರ್ಮಿನಲ್ ಆವರಣ ಬಹುತೇಕ ಹುಲ್ಲುಕಡ್ಡಿ, ಕಳೆ ಬೆಳೆದು ತುಂಬಿದ್ದು, ಯಾವುದೋ ಕಟ್ಟಡದ ಪಳೆಯುಳಿಕೆ ಎಂಬ ವಭಾವನೆಯನ್ನುಮೂಡಿಸುವಂತಿತ್ತು.




Source:http://prajavani.net/include/story.php?news=109170&section=111&menuid=10

Airport, a castle in the air for Bidar residents

It appears that Bidar residents' long wait for civil aviation facilities at the Bidar Air Force Base has been in vain.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has not accepted the State Government's request to start civil aviation here, even four years after of the Ministry of Defence cleared the use of the airstrip for civil aviation.

This is because the GMR group that operates the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad has objected to the State Government's demand. GMR officials maintain that they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the AAI that bars another airport coming up within 150 kilometres of the Hyderabad airport.

“GMR has urged the AAI not to permit civil aviation in Bidar, as the airports in Hyderabad and Bidar are less than 150 kilometres away from each other. According to the MOU, having another airport in close proximity would ‘affect its revenue stream,'” government sources said.

The State Government then requested the GMR group to take over operation of the Bidar airport, asking it to collect and keep the airport user charges from commuters.

The then infrastructure secretary, V. Madhu, held a meeting with GMR officials and a team from the group came down to Bidar airport to inspect the facilities. However, the infrastructure major has not responded positively to the State Government's repeated requests, government sources said.

“They keep arguing that the operations will not be financially viable,” said a senior officer. “We tried to tell them that their seed investment here would be zero. They have to just come, put up their banner and start operations. There is a runway, a well-protected boundary and a terminal. They don't have to spend money on any of these. Their revenue will start from day one. But they are not convinced,” the officer said.

When contacted, a GMR spokesman in Hyderabad said the group was “studying the situation”.

Terminal

After the Ministry of Defence cleared the proposal in 2007, the State Government wrote to the AAI, urging it to permit private airlines to operate from here. Hoping that the request would be granted, the State Government built a terminal, including a passenger lounge and a customs office complex in 2008, built at a cost of Rs. 3 crore.

Expired lease

Land for the terminal was obtained on lease in Chidri village behind the air base for three years. The lease of the land expired on September 6. Revenue department sources said they were trying to extend the lease.

“We have waited for three years for the AAI to issue permission. Now we don't know what to do with the office complex. If the State Government tells us to drop the idea, we will use the terminal for some other purpose,” a senior officer said.

Officials are not optimistic. “The State Government may not pursue the matter with GMR as the Gulbarga airport will be operational in 6-9 months and infrastructure needs of the region will be served,” a senior officer said. 

Source: the Hindu     

 URL : http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article2445915.ece

GMR refuses to give NOC for Bidar airport

BANGALORE: Karnataka will have to abandon plans for a civilian airport in the state’s northern-most district, Bidar, after infrastructure and airport major, GMR, refused to give a no objection certificate (NOC) to the project.

The state government, which is keen on having an airport in each district headquarters, had secured the permission of the defence ministry some time ago to convert an old defence airport for civilian use in Bidar. It planned to upgrade the terminal and improve facilities to attract civilian aircraft and passengers.
READ FULL