Updated: December 18, 2020 6:29:02 pm
A model design of Jewar Airport (Source: Delhi Noida International Airport via Twitter / @ dr_maheshsharma)
Uttar Pradesh Prime Minister Yogi Adityanath has given the go-ahead to the name, design and logo of the long awaited Noida’s Jewar International Airport. Yogi said that the airport, which will be officially known as Noida Greenfield International Airport, will become a global brand and the pride of India.
A look at the key features of the airport, its timeline, the politics that kept it on hold thus far, and eventually its revival.
Key features of the airport:
Passenger capacity: NOIDA Greenfield International Airport, Jewar will be developed in four phases. Its initial capacity will be 12 million passengers per year, and it is expected to increase to 70 million passengers each year by 2050.
Tracks: The airport will start with two runways and may have up to five runways in subsequent years.
cost: The cost of Jewar airport is estimated to be around Rs 30 billion.
ZoneAlthough the airport is expected to be built on some 5,000 hectares of land, so far the government has acquired 1,334 hectares of land for which two runways will be built in the initial phase, and an additional 50 hectares of land for the rehabilitation of the displaced by the project. The remaining land would be purchased in a phased manner.
The logo: The airport has the state bird ‘saras’ (crane) as its logo. Government sources reported that the logo was presented to the Chief Minister on Thursday. They said the bird is in a flight posture to indicate connectivity with the rest of the world.📣 Follow Express explained on Telegram
The airport will be officially known as Noida Greenfield International Airport. (Source: Delhi Noida International Airport via Twitter / @ dr_maheshsharma)
The project through regimes
While the airport project in its current form has been called a “new project”, the idea was first proposed in 2001 when Rajnath Singh was Chief Minister in 2001, although it did not materialize at that time. The project was called Taj International and Aviation Hub at the time.
It received a boost during the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) regime in the state led by then-Chief Minister Mayawati from 2007 to 2012, with even a proposed cargo center alongside it. However, the project was unable to move forward due to the center-state’s quarrel with the former that noted its proximity to the existing international airport in Delhi, which, it said, was against an agreement that no airport can reach within the radius of 150 km from Delhi airport.
The project was later shelved during the SP regime, which began lobbying for an international airport in Agra to build connectivity to its dream project, the Lucknow-Agra Expressway.
The project was revived during the current BJP regime, and with the same party in the center and in the state, things could move forward much faster. The site clearance for the airport was done in 2017. Over the past three years, various clearances have followed, including safety, environment, bidder, etc. It was Zurich Airport International AG that won the tender to develop the airport in December last year.
The airport is expected to share the cargo from IGI airport in Delhi. (Source: Delhi Noida International Airport via Twitter / @ dr_maheshsharma)
Importance of its proximity to Delhi airport: Jewar airport is expected to share the cargo from IGI airport in Delhi. Furthermore, as the Delhi airport is expected to reach capacity in the next few years, experts say this airport would serve as an alternative given its plan to expand to 70 million passengers a year and with five runways.
The timeline
July 6, 2017: Site clearance by the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation.
October 5, 2017: NOC of the Ministry of the Interior.
July 11, 2018: NOC of the Ministry of Defense.
November 29, 2019: Financial offers were opened. Zurich Airport International AG offers a premium offer of? 400.97 per passenger.
December 16, 2019: The UP government selects Zurich Airport International AG as the developer.
March 9, 2020: The project obtains environmental authorization.
May 2020: Project with security authorization granted by the Ministry of Civil Aviation of the Government.
October 07, 2020: Zurich AG International Airport Special Purpose Vehicle for the project, ie Yamuna International Airport Pvt. Ltd and UP government sign a concession contract.
December 17, 2020: The project is called “Greenfield NOIDA International Airport, Jewar”; its logo of a flying Saras as well as its design authorized by the government.
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