Runway expansion at airport to start soon

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The district administration had initiated the land acquisition process for the expansion of Chikalthana Airport in January 2025. After the objections raised to the preliminary notification were resolved, the process of modifying the land acquisition area has also been completed. The final notification is now set to be published in the Government Gazette next week, following which the land acquisition process will gain momentum.

A total of 139 acres of land is required for the expansion of the airport runway. For this purpose, the government made a financial provision of ₹734 crore in the March 2023 budget. Accordingly, out of the proposed 139 acres, 1.5 acres were excluded, while 0.16 acres were added from another gut. However, this process took about a month. Now, the final notification under Section 19, detailing how much land will be acquired from each landowner for the expansion, will be published. So far, funds amounting to ₹217 crore have been received by the administration for the project.

After the notification is published, landowners will be served notices regarding the land acquisition. Hearings will be conducted on the objections received, following which a draft award will be prepared and a request will be made to the government for the required funds for land acquisition. Once the funds are received from the government, the final award will be announced, said the sub-divisional officer Dr Venkat Rathod.