In an era where high-speed internet is a basic necessity, the Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali, has been functioning without Wi-Fi for the past three years. Despite repeated complaints from passengers, the authorities have failed to restore the service. There are three lounges, including two domestic and one international.
The airport, which handles a daily footfall of around 10,000 passengers and operates 52 flights, including two international flights—to Abu Dhabi and Dubai—has been struggling without a working internet facility since November 2022, when the contract with the previous service provider, Three Vee Marketing Private Limited, expired.
Officials at Chandigarh International Airport Limited (CHIAL) admitted the lapse, stating that although tenders were floated for a new service provider, no government agency showed interest.
CHIAL CEO Ajay Kumar said that work to restore Wi-Fi services has finally been awarded and high-speed internet will be available soon.
A senior airport official added that the service is now being installed under the PM-WANI scheme, as per revised Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) guidelines. “We are hopeful that the facility will be operational by the end of October,” the official said.
Meanwhile, Vivek Nijhawan, director of Three Vee Marketing Private Limited, said, “Our five-year contract ended in November 2022. We offered to continue the service until a new provider was appointed, but the airport authorities declined. Our equipment is still lying at the airport despite repeated reminders for the return of our security deposit and removal of devices.”
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Vivek Nijhawan, director of Three Vee Marketing Private Limited, said, “Our five-year contract ended in November 2022. We offered to continue the service until a new provider was appointed, but the airport authorities declined. Our equipment is still lying at the airport despite repeated reminders for the return of our security deposit and removal of devices.”
{{/usCountry}}Frequent traveller Vikram Gupta termed the situation “inconvenient and embarrassing,” adding that the absence of Wi-Fi tarnishes the airport’s image among international passengers.
Handling over 10,000 passengers daily, the Chandigarh airport serves as a key gateway to the tricity region, connecting it to major domestic destinations, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Pune, and Srinagar.
The Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 11, 2015.