Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, 25 November, laid the foundation stone of the Noida International Airport in Jewar in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar district.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya, and Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia are also present at the event.
"For landlocked states like UP, airports play an important role. This airport will not only connect to the neighbouring states more easily, but also to the international markets for the benefit of the farmers," PM Modi said in his address.
"Airports in any states benefit the whole region. It creates employment opportunities, you need thousands of people to run such projects. This airport will provide the much needed employment in Western UP," he added.
He further said that the airport will boost tourism in the state.
"First time in 70 years of Independence, UP is now getting what it always deserved. The double engine government has made sure that UP becomes the most connected state in the country," PM Modi said, while lauding the state government.
Training guns at the pervious governments, PM modi said that UP has always been targeted over issues like poverty, caste discrimination, and mafia raaj.
"The previous government pushed UP into deprivation and darkness after making false promises. The same state today is not just performing nationally, but is being lauded internationally," he said.
Yogi Adityanath, Scindia Thank PM Modi, Laud Project
UP CM Adityanath, while addressing the gathering, lauded PM Modi's vision for the airport.
"I also thank scores of farmers who themselves gave up their lands to make space for the airport," he said.
Taking a jibe at the pervious state governments of the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, Adityanath said that people in the past only believed more in "inciting riots" than facilitating development.
Scindia, while praising the project, said that the Modi government made more airports across India in seven years than successive governments did in the 70 years since independence.
"The Noida International Airport, a multi-modal connectivity hub, will create employment opportunities for more than 1 lakh people. Very soon, the country will see 17 new airports, including an international airport at Ayodhya," he said.
The Noida International Airport
According to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Uttar Pradesh will become the only state in India to have five international airports.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who had earlier visited Jewar to review preparations on Tuesday, will also be present during the inauguration. During his previous visit, he was quoted as saying:
"Noida International Airport in Jewar will become functional in 2024. It will be the 5th international airport in UP. Being developed with an estimated investment of Rs 34,000 crores, this airport will create employment opportunities for over 1 lakh people."
Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Secretary Rajiv Bansal said that the Noida International Airport will be implemented in four phases and the work on the first phase is scheduled to be completed in 36 months.
He added, "The traffic of 12 million passengers per year is expected in the first phase and by the completion of final phase ie between 2040-50, the capacity of Jewar airport will be to handle 70 million passengers per year", ANI reported.
Bansal also said that the prime minister was personally monitoring the project, while the Uttar Pradesh government was spending Rs 4,326 crore on the acquisition of land and rehabilitation and resettlement, ANI reported.
The first phase costs will be over Rs 10,050 crore. The airport will be spread over 1,300 hectares and serve around 1.2 crore passengers. This will be UP's fifth international airport and is expected to be completed by 2024. It will also be the second international airport in Delhi-NCR.
(With inputs from ANI.)
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