Orissa to have a second airport at Jharsuguda
27 Sep 2007
The central government plans to set up another airport at Jharsuguda in western Orissa. It also plans to upgrade the Biju Patnaik Airport at Bhubaneshwar to international standards, civil aviation minister Praful Patel said in Bhubaneshwar on Monday 24 September.
Air tariff had substantially come down, Patel said, and the government aimed to make air travel affordable for the middle and lower middle class people, who constitute a majority of the country's population.
The union minister's announcement about an international airport came in the wake of rapid industrialisation drive in the state, with investors proposing a raft of new ventures.
Besides catering to the business houses, the Bhubaneshwar international airport would help tour operators bring foreign tourists to the state, which has a 480-km coastline, sanctuaries, historical monuments like the Sun Temple at Konark and beaches.
