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Chipi airport will land tourists... locals believe business will take off
Locals feel the new airport at Chipi will bring an economic boom with employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for locals, besides tourists
PUNE For Sameer Mhadgut and his family, it is an exciting opportunity to start a small restaurant after him having served in the hospitality industry for years.
If the Covid-induced lockdown took away his job, the upcoming airport at Chipi in Sindhudurg district has opened the doors to a new life for the Mhadguts.
With the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granting an aerodrome licence to Sindhudurg airport, aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia will inaugurate the airport on October 9, putting this Konkan backwater firmly on the country’s aviation radar.
Locals feel the new airport at Chipi will bring an economic boom with employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for locals, who otherwise have to migrate to Mumbai and Pune for better employment opportunities.
“I was working with a private firm earlier and when the countrywide lockdown was imposed last year, tourism and other industries in Sindhudurg district came to standstill with people losing jobs. So we decided to start our own small restaurant in Malvan. One of the major reasons we took this decision was the Sindhudurg airport, which will bring more tourists, which means more business for us,” said Mhadgut, 42, who stays in Malvan city along with his wife, daughter and son.
Like him, many on the costal belt are looking forward to the opening up of new opportunities in the region and competing with neighbouring Goa, now that the airport in Sindhdurg will aim to be as good as the Dabolim airport near Vasco, if not better.
The Sindhdurg airport in Chipi surrounded by various tourist destinations like the the historic Sindhudurg fort in Malvan, and serene beaches at Tarkarli, Devbagh, and Chivla.
The airport falls under Vengurla tehsil, bordering Goa. International tourists landing at Dabolim airport, 90km from Chipi, will now be one target audience.
The Sindhudurg airport cost approximately ₹8 crore to set up and is the first of its kind in the south Konkan region, aimed at enhancing air connectivity with western Maharashtra and the southern states.
“The airport, an SPV of IRB Infra, will not only generate passenger traffic, but will also be a boon for the economic development of the region as it will facilitate and boost cargo transportation, and generate direct as well as indirect employment and other business opportunities for the local people,” reads a recent statement from IRB, after the airport received its aerodrome licence on September 17.
Locals feel the Chipi airport, which was awaiting clearance for four years, will open the doors of the Konkan to the world.
Currently, most international tourists visit this costal belt on the Konkan railway by boarding trains from Mumbai, 550km from Vengurla.
“Before Covid, 1,000 people used to come to our watersports centre on a daily basis and to cater them we had staff of 22 people. This number will increase once we start getting more foreigners coming to Sindhudurg after the resumption of flight operations. This is going to play a major role in creating job opportunities in the tourism industry in our region,” said Damodar Todankar, owner of a watersport centre at Malvan beach.
Sindhudurg beaches offer scuba diving, parasailing and the mandatory speed boats and jet-skis.
For mango and cashew growers, along with fishermen, cargo services once flight operations begin, offer much hope.
“It has the potential to become a cargo hub of the western region as there is ample space for handling the cargo, and is expandable to meet the future growing needs,” a statement from IRB Infra adds.
According to Nitin Walke, former president and current convenor of the Sindhudurg district Vyapari Mahasangh, cargo services from the airport is what farmers and traders have been looking for.
“There are several major agriculture products the region grows, like mango and cashew, apart from the fisheries. This cargo service can bring a revolution for locals who can send their products internationally. There are 10,000 traders and small shop owners around the district who would benefit from this cargo service,” said Walke.
According to airport officials, the 2,500-metre-long runway can handle 200 departing and 200 arriving passengers during peak hours and is suited for operating A-320 and B-737 types of aircraft.
The government is looking start flight operations here under the UDAN scheme.
Political mileage: who is in the pilot’s seat?
Politically, it is likely to provide mileage for Union minister and BJP leader Narayan Rane, who was a driving force behind the airport.
For Shiv Sena, the airport is equally important to retain its hold over Konkan.
After becoming union minister, Rane’s first major achievement has been the airport, first envisaged around 15 years ago, though on-ground work began only five years ago.
Nitesh Rane, son of Narayan Rane and legislator from Kankavali in Sindhudurg district said, “I think it is more important to give due respect to everyone who has given their contribution for development of this airport. I don’t want to see this positive beginning from a political angle. Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, Union minister Narayan Rane and of course, union aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia will all be present on the inauguration day which is more important to me,” said Nitesh Rane.
According to Nitesh Rane, the airport will bring change the way investors and traders look at this region.
“The class of tourists who will fly down to Sindhudurg airport with family will eventually help the local people increase revenue. There will be direct and in-direct employment opportunities coming up now all across the district, once the airport starts operating.”
Maharashtra’s technical and higher education minister and the guardian minister of Sindhudurg district Uday Samant said, “Around two years ago Uddhav Thackeray was on a Konkan tour and he had given a commitment to start the Chipi airport for the development of the region. Finally, this dream is coming true.”
This proposed inauguration of this green airport stands in contrast to projects proposed previously by various governments, that either met with resistance from locals or failed to gather momentum; one being the Nanar refinery. After stiff resistance, the then Devendra Fadnavis government was forced to shift the refinery from Nanar to a location the government has not announced yet. Then there is the Enron-Dabhol power project, which after facing opposition initially, eventually began functioning.
