The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (SVP) International Airport in Ahmedabad has been illegally charging entry fees from vehicles at the airport gates under the head of parking fees,even from vehicles that come to drop passengers and do not park in the premises. Airports Authority of India (AAI) had given the parking contract to a private contractor,KASS Private Parking Ltd. According to the contract,KASS has to deploy its personnel in the parking area and ensure vehicles do not overcrowd the terminal. The contractor is authorised to charge only parking fees from vehicles that park in the parking lot at the airport. But the contractor has been charging entry fees from all vehicles at the airport entrance itself. Two men have been deployed at the entry gates to collect the fees at the airport and issue a 'parking slip' as a receipt. The receipt bears the official AAI monogram and and says the amount levied is for 'parking'. Incidentally,this practice makes Ahmedabad airport the only one in the country to charge fees to enter the premises. AAI has created a parking space for 1,000 vehicles at the international airport and around 700 to 800 vehicles come to the airport everyday. A majority are hotel cars,tourist buses and cars of corporates that come just to drop the passengers. But even they are forced to pay entry fees. Airport Director Anuj Agarwal agreed that the practice is illegal. He said: AAI has a contract with them only for arranging the parking facility. As per the contract,they can take the money collected as parking fee and pay us the agreed license fee at the end of every month. But charges for parking can be levied only on vehicles that are parked in the premises,and not from those that drop passengers and go away. The blanket entry fee charged is Rs 16 for two wheelers,Rs 40 for four wheelers and Rs 225 for buses. The practice is also posing other problems at the airport. It is leading to overcrowding outside the international terminal. The visitors park their vehicles anywhere inside the premises after paying the entry fee. Sources said the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) is trying to cope up with the issue. People who come to drop passengers wait outside the terminal till the passengers finally go inside the terminal. Sources added that the entry fee levy was going on earlier at the old international terminal too,due to an alleged nexus between the airport authorities and the private contractor. SVPI officials told The Indian Express that they will look into the issue.
