Dibrugarh, July 27: The Airports Authority of India sees potential in Dibrugarh airport, situated at Mohanbari, 15km from the town, as an export hub of the Northeast.

The easternmost civilian airport of the country is surrounded by booming tea, oil, natural gas, polymer, tea tourism and eco-tourism industries and has a geographic proximity to Southeast Asia, which makes it ideal for export initiatives.

The new director of the airport, Nawnit Kumar Gupta, has begun his mission after assuming charge last month.

Social activists Nabajyoti Borkakoty and Raju Kumar Chetry of Dibrugarh had visited the airport to take stock of the runway extension project.

"The runway extension project at the airport has started and once it is completed, heavy aircraft can land at Dibrugarh airport, which is important from the strategic point of view," Borkakoty said. He pointed out that east Assam is very rich in tourism and Dibrugarh airport is the only one that connects Arunachal Pradesh. "If the project is completed, it will help tourism and export sectors in this part," he said.

Unfortunately, the construction site wore a deserted look despite the presence of a material-testing laboratory, mounds of stone chips and some eight-odd piles on the ground.

In the first week of this month, army authorities met AAI officials at the airport and asked them to shift the material-testing laboratory elsewhere and also stop dumping materials, claiming that the land belonged to them.

Talking to The Telegraph, Gupta said the AAI had approached both the army authorities and the deputy commissioner of Dibrugarh for an early resolution of the issue in the greater interest of the already delayed project.

An airport official said a meeting was held recently and the issue had been resolved.

It may be mentioned that the army had handed over 5.33 acres of land for the runway extension project in Dibrugarh in exchange for eight acres of land and some other facilities in Lilabari from the AAI.

"Dibrugarh airport will also have a hanga#r capable of accommodating an Airbus 320 and a new control tower building having advanced facilities like those available in metros such as New Delhi and Mumbai. According to the blueprint, besides a new taxiway from the extended portion of the runway to the isolation bay, there will also be a kilometre-long array of guiding lights," Gupta said.

The airport director said he plans to start a flying club for the people of Assam at the airport once the extension of the runway to 7,500 feet is completed by 2018.