Morung Express News
Dimapur | October 13
Since 2008, the Dimapur Airport authority, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) and its regional headquarter have been writing to the Nagaland state government for acquiring land at Aoyimti and Hollohon villages for expansion and development of Dimapur Airport. However, nothing concrete and positive has come out of it. Various joint meetings have also been held but have not yielded any positive results.
According to Director of Dimapur Airport, Mughavi Zhimo, land acquisition is one of the major problems for expansion of the only Airport in the state.
Speaking to The Morung Express on Saturday, the Director also disclosed that the state government has acquired a huge tract of land near Chathe River for future expansion of the Airport but the land is yet to be handed over to the Airport authority. He said the acquired land once handed over to the airport would allow installation of critical equipment such as Instrument Landing System (ILS).
ILS has two components including the Glide Path which provides slope guidance for aeroplanes and the Localizer which provides guidance to bring aircraft to the centreline of the runway. Mughavi said these were critical components for the safe landing of aircraft. As per international norms, Localizer is required to be located at least 300 metres from the runway end, he informed. The Localizer at Dimapur Airport is located towards Chathe River at 135m from runway running short of 165m.
“That is why land for future development towards Chathe is critical,” he said. Mughavi also informed that 213m runway towards NH 29 has been permanently displaced even though the land is available. He said the current runway was manageable for Airbus but for bigger aircraft lengthier runway was needed towards Chather River. “We are waiting for the land to be handed over to us so that development can be initiated,” he said. Further, some tract of land from Assam Rifles and CRPF camps area is needed for the Airport, he added.
It was also informed that as per international standard, 320m runway is needed for an Airbus. However, Dimapur Airport has less than 300m. He said this was a major cause of safety concern for the airport authority.
Drainage woes
Another problem affecting the operation of the airport is the drain from Sugar Mill village and NEZCC flowing into the airport resulting in the runway being flooded. “During monsoon, the runway is flooded and many times, flights are either cancelled or delayed,” he added. Even during the dry season, water flows into the runways and it becomes difficult to maintain, Mughavi added. The Director said that the airport authority has been requesting the state government to divert the drain to avoid water flow into the airport but rued that the problem has not be been taken care of yet.
Unregulated constructions around airport
According to the Director, the growth of unregulated buildings and other constructions in and around the airport were causing obstructions to the airport. He noted that prior approvals are not taken in the state for construction of buildings thus causing operational obstructions to the airport. He informed that the authority was taking up the issue with the district administration and the authority was planning to conduct a seminar very soon involving the administration, municipal bodies and nearby villages.
He said the central government was proactive in developing airports in other parts of the state but Nagaland was facing bottlenecks owing to land acquisition.
Development activities ongoing despite limitations
Nevertheless, the Director said that various developmental activities have been taking place at the airport. Ongoing developments, despite limitations, include strengthening of the runway, parking stand, construction of isolation bay, link taxiway, upgradation and repair of perimeter wall in and around the airport. Air Conditioning of the entire terminal is also ongoing. Major upgradation of the toilets is also being undertaken. The authority is taking up road repair works from the airport till NH 29. He said that the service road inside the airport would also be taken up soon. Another major work to be taken up is the external aluminium cladding of the terminal which according to the Director would change the entire outlook of the airport.
In the first phase, facelift of the canopy in front of the terminal and laying of tiles have been completed. Mughavi informed that the Airport was facing the issue of rainwater leakage from the terminal building but said that major work was carried out and the problem has been resolved.
It was informed that the airport had recently procured four numbers of X-ray machines for faster processing of passengers.
CUTE (Common User Terminal Equipment) passenger counters are also on the verge of completion for the purpose of quick passenger check-ins. Under the CUTE check-in system, boarding pass of any airline can be issued from the CUTE counter whenever there is a rush at the counter of a particular airline. The airport is also coming up with self-check-in counters and with that, the passengers no more need to go to counters but punch in the PNR number and board the plane.
Further, the airport has already introduced tagless baggage. Major upgradation of CCTVs is also under progress for enhanced security. Biometric Access Control is also nearing completion.
The airport has also provided LED lighting till the national highway benefitting the villagers besides installing garden type lighting around the airport building.
It was further informed that the airport has installed sanitary napkin dispenser at all the ladies’ toilets and the project was implemented 8-9 months back. Rs 5 coin has to be INSERT IGNOREed to dispense the napkin.
He said that Dimapur Airport authority was much concerned with the safety and security issues but is left speechless and helpless whenever the Directorate General of Civil Aviation or Bureau of Civil Aviation Security teams come for inspection and make critical remarks about the airport.
