Mumbai, Jan 13 Shiv Sena(UBT) leader and former Minister Aditya Thackeray has criticised the BJP-led government at the Centre and the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra for delay in naming the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) after veteran leader DB Patil and the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar airport after Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj.
“Is this pendency normal for Union government of the BJP? Or is it purely because they want to keep insulting Maharashtra?” he asked.
In his post on X, Aditya Thackeray said, “It is the birth anniversary of DB Patil. In 2022, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) Government cabinet decided to name the Navi Mumbai International Airport as DB Patil International Airport and sent the recommendation to the Union government. The status: pending for approval from Govt of India. For over 3 years, despite all of us writing reminder letters to the Union Civil Aviation ministers (then and now), it remains pending. I once again request Union Civil Aviation Minister @RamMNK ji to approve the proposal today, on this special occasion.”
He further said, "Similarly, the proposal for Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar airport to be named as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj airport remains pending with the union government since 2020.”
In January 2024, the Shiv Sena(UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray made similar demands in his letter to the Centre.
“The Ayodhya airport has been renamed as Maharshi Valmiki International Airport and Mopa airport in Goa as Manohar International Airport after the state's late chief minister Manohar Parrikar. If Ayodhya airport and Mopa airport can be named after individuals, then why can't the same norm be applied to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Navi Mumbai airports in Maharashtra?” he asked.
Further, Aditya Thackeray’s move now to remind the state and Centre of naming NMIA is important as the Mahayuti government has indicated that the greenfield airport will start operations in April this year with 20 crore passengers handling capacity annually.
On December 29 last year, an Indigo A320 aircraft successfully touched down at the airport runway as NMIA conducted its first flight validation test. On October 11, 2024, the inaugural landing of an Indian Air Force C-295, a large multi-role tactical airlifter, took place from the airport.
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