No joint venture company formed yet for construction activity, says AAI official

Almost a year has passed since an international airport was formally approved for Mohali. No work has, however, begun at the ground level as yet.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed, requisite land was acquired, compensation paid, and the acquired land was handed over to the Centre but work to construct the civil airport terminal complex is yet to take off.

According to T Premnath, General Manager (PR), Airports Authority of India (AAI), the project will be a joint venture. However, a Joint Venture Company (JVC) has not yet been constituted to undertake the construction work, he said.

Neither has a boundary wall been constructed nor has the land been leveled. In the absence of any development activity on the land adjoining the domestic airport at Chandigarh, a part of the acquired land in Jheourheri village has been brought under cultivation.

A visit to the site revealed that the Jheourheri villagers, who gave their land for the airport project at Rs 1.5 crore per acre, continue with uninterrupted access to the acquired land. “As no work has begun, several villagers are still cultivating the land,” said Dharam Singh, a villager.

Sadhu Singh, another villager, added: “Our lands were acquired and compensation was paid in record time. But after that, no work was initiated on the site.”

As per the initial agreement, it was decided that the AAI will bear the estimated expenditure of Rs 80 crore on the construction of the international terminal building.

... contd.