Chandigarh MP: Make old airport terminal operational

Chandigarh MP and former Union Minister Manish Tewari today laid emphasis on operating the old terminal building of the airport.

While chairing a meeting of the Airport Advisory Committee of the Shaheed-E-Azam Chandigarh International Airport jointly in Chandigarh and Mohali here today, Tewari said Rs 45 crore was spent on its renovation between 2011 and 2014 and it has been lying in disuse.

He suggested that this building should be turned into a full-fledged terminal No. 1 of the airport as it can immensely benefit the passengers from Panchkula and Chandigarh.

The meeting was co-chaired by Anandpur Sahib MP Malwinder Singh Kang.

The meeting was also attended by members, including city Congress president HS Lucky, Pawan Dewan, Chandermukhi Sharma, Gurmail Singh Pehalwan, Deputy Commissioner and SSP, Mohali, and other officials of the Chandigarh International Airport Limited and Indian Air Force.

The Chairperson stressed that Chandigarh Airport be turned into ‘Point of Call’ (POC) for international airlines to facilitate international flights to and from here.

The meeting stressed the need for improving the passenger amenities at the airport besides increasing the ingress points for easy entry and exit of the passengers.

It also demanded that free parking time for the vehicles should be increased from 10 to 12 minutes.

The meeting also flagged the concern over the solid waste piling up on the approach the runway and demanded that it must be sensitised so that the bird hits are minimised.

It called upon the rural development department Chandigarh and the Municipal Corporation, Mohali, to ensure that the access to the runway is sensitised.

The Advisory Committee underlined the need for maintaining cleanliness at the airport at all costs. Besides, it called for sensitising the airlines’ staff to be sensitive towards passengers.