Construction under way at Dibrugarh airport

Aug. 29: The expansion work at Mohanbari airport, located 16km from the district headquarters town, has received a push with chief minister Tarun Gogoi taking up the matter of land acquisition with the defence ministry.

The runway extension project had been grounded for a long time with the army and air force refusing to hand over the required land.

Gogoi has written to the defence ministry asking it to hand over the plot of land as soon as possible so that the extension work of the airport can be completed at the earliest.

Till now, the Dibrugarh district administration has handed over 290 bighas to the airport authorities for the extension of the runway (from 6,000 feet to 7,500 feet).

“Problems arose when we did not get a clearance from the defence ministry for handing over the six acres owned by the defence ministry (of which 5.33 acres belong to the army and 0.71 acre to the air force). We have held several rounds of discussions with the local army and air force authorities but could not reach an amicable solution,” deputy commissioner Ashutosh Agnihotri said.

Mohanbari airport not only caters to the Upper Assam districts of Dibrugarh, Tinsukia and Sivasagar, but also Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. The improved airport will have night landing facilities and a new terminal building.

Dibrugarh parliamentarian Sarbananda Sonowal has repeatedly taken up the development issue of the airport with the Centre. The Centre reciprocated positively, sanctioning Rs 52.8 crore for the development of the airport. “The extension work must be completed at the earliest,” Sonowal said.