By Pawan Tripathi
Ayodhya, June 4 The Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram International Airport coming up in Ayodhya is being designed to give wings to the holy city.
The construction is in full swing. The first terminal with a capacity of 300 passengers will be operational soon, while the remaining three terminals will be fully completed in 2025.
When people arrive in Ayodhya in the coming months, they will get a glimpse of the grand Ram temple before they actually visit the shrine.
To make travel easy, the Ayodhya district administration has started demolishing shops and houses at Naya Ghat for the Ram Path stretch widening project and compensation has also been given to the people.
Along with the airport, the surrounding area will also be developed. The competition to build guest houses and stay homes has already started in the surrounding areas. Many taxi stands and shops will also be established near the airport complex.
The Ayodhya airport will be a replica of the Ram temple.
The design of the airport will reflect the idea and spirit of the Ram Mandir and the roof of the terminal is proposed to be adorned with shikharas of varying heights to add a sense of grandeur to the structure. The terminal will also have decorative columns pictorially displaying important events from the Ramayana.
Apart from this, pink sandstone stones of Rajasthan Bansi Paharpur, which are used in the Ram temple, have been used in the construction of the airport which is 11 kms from the Janmabhoomi.
The terminal is being built in such a way that rain water can be harvested and maximum work can be accomplished through solar energy.
Its estimated cost is about Rs 2.24 billion.
The new terminal building with a total area of 6,000 sq.m. is being designed to serve 300 passengers daily during the peak hours with an annual handling capacity of six lakh passengers.
The civil aviation department of Uttar Pradesh and the Airport Authority of India have started the work of expanding this international airport in about 317 acres of land for the first phase. The construction is being done in three phases.
The first phase includes the construction of a 6,000 square meter terminal building as well as expansion of the runway to a length of 2200 meters and a width of 45 meters.
Vinod Kumar, Airport Director, told that the construction work of the first terminal will be completed as soon as possible. But it will be a bit difficult to give any deadline.
"The work of the runway has been completed to a large extent and the rest of the work is being done at a fast pace."
He said that after the opening of the first terminal, the airport will have the capacity to handle 150 passengers.
BJP Mayor Girish Pati Tripathi in Ayodhya has expressed happiness at the speed with which the work is going on.
He said it is expected that in the coming time, the new picture of Ayodhya will be revealed to the whole world.
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