Sabarimala Greenfield Airport
Sabarimala International Airport | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Serves | Kottayam, Sabarimala, Pathanamthitta, Ranni | ||||||||||
| Location | Manimala & Erumely, Kottayam District | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 4 m / 13 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 9°27′51″N 76°48′20″E / 9.464083°N 76.805579°E | ||||||||||
| Website | sabariairport | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  Sabarimala International Airport Location of airport in Kerala  Sabarimala International Airport Sabarimala International Airport (India) | |||||||||||
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Sabarimala International Greenfield Airport[2] (IATA: none, ICAO: none),[3][4][1] is a proposed greenfield international airport, which will serve the city of Kottayam and the pilgrimage site of Sabarimala in the state of Kerala, India. The airport will be built in between the towns of Erumeli South and Manimala. The nearest town with a railway station is Thiruvalla (34 km). The proposed site is 53.9 km[5] away from Sabarimala temple , 9.2 km[6] away from Kanjirappally town and 9 km away from Ranni town. The site is located at about 40 km from the city of Kottayam. The site is spread over 2,570 acres (10.4 km2) of area.[7] It is 136 km from the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram, and 113 km from Kochi. Once commissioned,this would be the fifth airport in the state.[1]
History
The Sabarimala temple, situated on the Western Ghats in Kerala's Pathanamthitta district, is one of India's holiest shrines, which attracts nearly 50 million visitors per season.[8] As of December 2019, an average of 75,000 pilgrims visit Sabarimala on a daily basis ever since the beginning of the annual pilgrim season in mid-November.[9] Presently, the only way to reach the hill shrine is by road. The increase in the number of pilgrims visiting the temple had prompted the government to look at an airport as an option to reduce traffic congestion during the pilgrimage season.[7] In view of this, in February 2017, the Government of Kerala gave in-principle approval to construct the airport, and the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) was asked to conduct a feasibility study.[10]
KSIDC had issued global tenders for the feasibility study of the project. The tender was won by the American consultancy firm, Louis Berger Group. Louis Berger submitted a techno-economic feasibility study and environmental impact assessment of the proposed greenfield airport in December 2018.[11] However, the consultancy did not conduct the environment impact assessment (EIA) as the state had not taken a final decision on the project including that of land acquisition.[12] In 2019, the state government constituted a search committee to select a special officer for the project, who would be given the task of coordinating with the consultancy in acquiring environment impact clearances and for the union civil aviation ministry’s approval for the project.[12] In December 2019, the state government appointed V. Thulasidas, the managing director of Kannur International Airport Ltd. (KIAL) as the special officer for the project.[13] In April 2023, after a long delayed and complicated process as mentioned above, the project got approval from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and preparation of the project's Detailed Project Report (DPR) is expected to begin within a month.[1]
Ownership
The site for the proposed airport is nearby the Cheruvally Estate, which was formerly the site of a rubber plantation.[14] Initially, the estate belonged to Harrison Plantations and later by the RPG Goenka group. Gospel for Asia, a Christian missionary organization under Believers Eastern Church took it over from the Goenka group. The ownership of the property was disputed in 2017 before the High Court of Kerala claiming that the Estate was government land.[15] A 2018 High Court order affirmed the church's ownership of the estate.[16]
Project timeline
- February 2017: The Government of Kerala gives an in-principle approval to construct the airport, and the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) has been appointed to conduct a feasibility study.[17]
- December 2018: After the KSIDC issued global tenders for the feasibility study of the project, it was won by the American consultancy firm, Louis Berger Group. It then submitted a techno-economic feasibility study and environmental impact assessment of the project.[18]
- August 2019: The Government of Kerala constituted a search committee to select a special officer for the project, who would be given the task of coordinating with the consultancy in acquiring environment impact clearances and for the Ministry of Civil Aviation’s approval for the project.[12]
- December 2019: The Government of Kerala appointed V. Thulasidas, the managing director of Kannur International Airport Ltd. (KIAL) as the special officer for the project.[19]
- April 2023: The project got approval from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and preparation of the project's Detailed Project Report (DPR) is expected to begin within a month.[1]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e "Sabarimala greenfield airport receives clearance from Civil Aviation Ministry –Kerala's Kottayam to get big connectivity boost". Times Now. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
- ^ "Sabarimala greenfield airport: Kerala govt orders acquisition of land". The News Minute. 18 June 2020.
- ^ DOCUMENTATION KERALA (PDF). Secretariat of The Kerala Legislature. p. 61. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 December 2022.
- ^ "Kerala women forced BJP to change stance on Sabarimala Temple, RSS stand suits north India: Surendran". Archived from the original on 31 December 2022.
Once the Believers' Church airport is opened, Sabarimala shrine will have to be kept opened everyday as apart from pilgrims no other passenger could be expected for the airport.
- ^ "Cheruvally Estate to Sabarimala (13 km)". Cheruvally Estate to Sabarimala. Google Maps. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ "Cheruvally Estate to Kanjirappally". Cheruvally Estate to Kanjirappally. Google Maps. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
- ^ a b "Kerala's next airport to come up in Kanjirappally | Kerala new airport | Kerala next airport | Sabarimala airport". English.manoramaonline.com. 19 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ^ "Kerala to set up airport in Kanjirapally to cater to Sabarimala hill shrine". The Financial Express. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ^ "It's slow progress for Sabarimala pilgrims". The Hindu. 25 December 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ "Sabarimala airport to come up on Cheruvally estate". The Hindu. 19 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ^ "Erumely airport report gathers dust". Deccan Chronicle. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "Sabarimala airport project: Special officer to be selected in a month". The New Indian Express. 2 August 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ "Thiruvananthapuram: Kial MD special officer for Sabarimala airport project". The Times of India. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ "Sabarimala airport: the century-old Cheruvally Estate was a British aerial discovery | Sabarimala airport | Cheruvally Estate | British aerial discovery | Erumely airport | Sabarimala pilgrims | Kerala". English.manoramaonline.com. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ^ "Cheruvally estate is government land, says CM Pinarayi Vijayan". Deccan Chronicle.
- ^ "Harrisons case setback may cost Kerala government dear in Erumeli airport project". The New Indian Express. 13 April 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ "Sabarimala airport to come up on Cheruvally estate". The Hindu. 19 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ^ "Erumely airport report gathers dust". Deccan Chronicle. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ "Thiruvananthapuram: Kial MD special officer for Sabarimala airport project". The Times of India. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
