All set for Hisar airport to take wings

Maharaja Agrasen Airport in Hisar, tipped to be the largest by area in the country, is expected to take wings soon. With a budget of about Rs 1,000 crore and spread over 7,200 acres, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, on the eve of Republic Day, announced that the airport would start its operations, as all formalities had been completed. It also raised hopes that Hisar town would be connected to other destinations in the country soon.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected to inaugurate the airport, the CM said. The development of the airport, meanwhile, has been mired in controversies, with the Opposition slamming the BJP government for “its inability to grab the opportunity for developing the second airport in the NCR when the Centre chose Jewar in Uttar Pradesh for this”.

The Haryana Government, too, planned to develop the Hisar airport in three phases. The first phase was completed on August 15, 2018, when the then Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar inaugurated the project, known as integrated aviation hub, at the airport. The air taxi services to some destination started on January 14, 2021 but these could not continue for long due to financial constraints.

The ambitious project is tipped as an engine of growth of development in Hisar, known as counter-magnet to the national capital of Delhi inside the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Project (DMIC). Recently, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Haryana Airport Development Corporation (HADC) and the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) to develop the aviation hub in 2988 acres in the airport at an estimated grant fund of Rs 10.53 crore. The MoU also added to the prospects of the development of an integrated aviation hub, including Hisar Airport operations, integrated manufacturing cluster, the Worldport cargo logistic hub, Maintenance-Repair-Operations (MRO) facility, entertainment village etc.

The Haryana Government has already signed an agreement with Alliance Air to operate flights from Hisar. Initially, flights will connect five places: Ayodhya, Jammu, Jaipur, Delhi, and Ahmedabad, with 70-seater flights. If passenger demand is insufficient, these flights may be reduced to 40-seaters.

The second phase of the construction at Hisar Airport is nearly complete. The airport runway has been equipped with the CAT-II lighting at a cost of Rs 16.18 crore, and the lights have already been tested. However, the installation of the landing instrument system (LIS) is pending, a prerequisite for night landings. Until this system is installed, the airport will not be permitted for night-time landings.

The development of the airport began in 2014, with the original land area of 300 acres, which has now expanded to 7,200 acres. By 2030, a new terminal, spanning 37,970 square meters and capable of handling 2.1 million passengers annually, will be completed. This terminal is expected to accommodate 3.6 million passengers per year, as per officials associated with the airport. Additionally, a Rs 500-crore terminal is under construction, and the airport is being developed as per international standards. The airport is also set to feature an integrated marketing cluster focused on defence and aerospace industries, attracting global companies, besides proposals for setting up a World Port and a Mega Cargo Port.

Arun Sihag, a Hisar-based activist, said it would be a feather in Hisar’s cap when the airport gets going and the flights start from here. “The huge amount of funds infused in developing the infrastructure should prove fruitful. Though some people term it a white elephant, I believe the airport will prove to be a milestone in the growth of Hisar and adjoining areas,” he said.