Ayodhya airport awaits ₹400-cr pre-budget booster

The UP Government has planned to release ₹400 crore for the Ayodhya airport project ahead of the state budget. The state government has also approached the Airport Authority of India (AAI) to kick off the development of the airport within the next three months and make it fit for the operation of ATR aircraft in the first phase. UP civil aviation secretary, Surendra Singh, informed that the fund would be released for the project before the budget session. This would be apart from the ₹625 crore which has already been given by the state government for land acquisition. The state government is committed to provide land for the project as per the commitment made in the MoU with the AAI, which is closely monitoring the purchase of land at the ground level. The state government had already approved the purchase of an additional 496-acre of land, which would be in addition to 177-acre at the existing airport site. AAI has asked the state that it seeks to start operation of ATR aircraft in the first phase within a year and then the AirBus in the next phase.