Bhubaneswar, Feb. 11: The Koraput district administration has submitted a proposal to the Odisha government, highlighting the justification of a full-fledged airstrip in the district, more than 500km from here.

On January 15, an experts’ team of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had visited the airstrip for a pre-feasibility study.

The Odisha government asked the Koraput collector to present a justification for the airstrip.

The administration has stated that the proposed airstrip will help around six districts of southern Odisha and few districts of Chhattisgarh.

“The nearest airport is in Vishakhapatnam, which is 250km from Jeypore. It takes nearly 10 hours to travel from Bhubaneswar to Jeypore. So, the need of a full-fledged airstrip is very much there for Koraput,” said district collector Sachin R. Yadav.

He also said the proposed facility would bring better governance in the undivided Koraput district, which is affected by Maoist activities.

The administration has also stressed on the need for an airstrip to exploit the tourism potential of the undivided Koraput district. Sources in the district administration said more than 10 lakh tourists visited various tourist places in the region every year.

The administration said it had sufficient land for the airstrip’s expansion.

“The airstrip can also be used by officials visiting Hindustan Aeronautics Limited at Sunabeda and National Aluminum Company Limited at Damanjodi,” said Yadav.

Koraput also has 13 destinations that attract tourists, he said.