Zeenews Bureau Lucknow: While Mayawati’s ambitious Greenfield airport at Jewar was scrapped by the Akhilesh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh, the ball seems to be rolling for the airport proposed at Mathura.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has invited a proposal from the UP government to set up the new airport near Mathura. Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh has assured Akhilesh Yadav of taking up the project on a fast track basis.
The Mathura administration has identified around 300 acres in Baldeo village for the proposed airport. The proposed site falls on the expressway between Agra and Mathura and is situated a little over 150 kms from the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi. Last week, Singh had told the UP government that the Taj International Aviation Hub (TIAH) proposal, which included an airport at Jewar, could not be approved. The reason cited for disapproval was the location of the proposed airport, which was at a distance of 70 kms from IGI. As per norms, two airports cannot be set up within 150 kms distance.
However, the ministry acknowledged the need for setting up an airport in the Taj Trapezium to boost tourism. Singh suggested Mathura as the location considering the fact that it is “located near Taj and there will be no air space conflict with the Indian Air Force (IAF) airport at Agra.” Interestingly, Mant area, from where Ajit Singh`s son Jayant Chaudhary had contested assembly elections, was also considered for setting up an international airport. However, the proposal could not materialise as the area is densely populated.