E-Paper
Kangra airport expansion: Pune institute gives nod to runway bridge over Manjhi
Administration had engaged services of Central Water and Power Research Station to conduct a study to explore feasibility of building a bridge to increase runway length of Kangra airport and realignment of Pathankot-Mandi Highway, channelisation of the Manjhi rivulet and restoration of water supply schemes
The expansion project for Kangra Airport at the Gaggal has moved a step further as the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Pune, has given a go ahead for runway bridge over Manjhi rivulet, a tributary of Beas.
The district administration had engaged the services of the CWPRS to conduct a study to explore feasibility of building a bridge to increase runway length of the airport and realignment of Pathankot-Mandi Highway, channelisation of the Manjhi rivulet and restoration of water supply schemes built on this rivulet among others.
The CWPRS team in its preliminary report has given a go ahead for building a runway bridge over the Manjhi rivulet, said Kangra deputy commissioner Nipun Jindal.
He said that the district administration has also submitted all the records sought by the state government related to airport expansion project.
“Now, we are awaiting a notification for social impact assessment (SIA), to be issued by the state government,” he said.
The expansion project envisages increasing runway length of Kangra airport from existing 1,372 meters to 3,010 meters.
Presently, due to shorter runway only 72-seater aircraft can land on the airstrip. Also, airlines here operate flights on lead penalty, which means they run at least 10-15% less than their full capacity of passengers, fuel and cargo, eventually resulting in higher air fares. Once the airstrip is extended to 3,010-meter, bigger aircrafts like Airbus 320 could land here which would not only valley’s connectivity to the other parts of the country but also bring down travel cost on this route. Jindal said that the airport extension will be done in two phases. In the first phase the runway length would be increased to 1,900 meters and to 3,010 meters in the second phase.
For expansion of the airport, Pathankot-Mandi highway will be needed to be diverted while the nearby Gaggal market will be displaced.
A total of 147 hectares of land is to be acquired in Kangra and Shahpur subdivisions for the airport extension of which 122 hectares of land is private and 25 hectares is government land including forest and other types of land.
The land to be acquired comes under Kangra and Shahpur sub-divisions. There are 1,200 houses and structures on this land.
The PWD has identified 339 houses and commercial buildings which would be removed for airport expansion.
Of these, 177 buildings fall in the jurisdiction of Kangra subdivision, 155 houses in Dharamshala and seven in Shahpur area.
Spread over 1,269 acres, the Kangra airport located at an altitude of 2,492 feet above sea level. The foundation stone of the airport was laid in 1986 while first flight operated in 1990. Its runway length was increased from 910 meters to 1,372 meters in 2007.
The apron provides parking space for two turboprop aircraft, like the ATR 72, while its terminal building can handle 100 passengers.
