Image showing a flight. For representational purposes.
Credit: iStock Photo
Palghar: The Maharashtra government has set the ball rolling for the development of an airport in the Palghar district which would be the third international airport in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region after the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai and the Navi Mumbai International Airport in Raigad.
The state government-run Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) has commenced a pre-feasibility study for the development of a Greenfield airport around the Vadhavan area of Palghar.
Vadhavan (also spelled Wadhawan) - in Palghar district - is located some 140 kms away from downtown Mumbai along the Maharashtra-Gujarat boundary.
The Wadhwan port - a Greenfield all-weather port is coming up in Vadhavan for which Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed the ground-breaking ceremony last year. The total project cost, including the land acquisition component is Rs 76,220 crore.
The project will be constructed by Vadhavan Port Project Ltd (VPPL), an SPV formed by Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) and Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB) with a shareholding of 74 per cent and 26 per cent, respectively, official sources said. This will include the development of core infrastructure, terminals, and other commercial infrastructure in public-private partnerships (PPP) mode.
There would also be road connectivity between the Vadhavan Port and national highways of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and rail linkage to the existing rail network and the upcoming Dedicated Rail Freight Corridor by the Ministry of Railways. The port will comprise nine container terminals, each 1,000 meters long, four multipurpose berths, including the Coastal berth, four Liquid Cargo berths, a Ro-Ro berth, and a Coast Guard berth.
An international airport in Vadhavan along with the modern port is going to be a game-changer for Maharashtra’s economy.