Officials at the Surat airport have begun preparation to get International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certificate for its Integrated Management System. They have also been working to develop the airport’s brand name so that it gets more domestic and international flights.

Currently, only one domestic flight operates from Surat that comes from Delhi. But a few days ago, an international flight had no difficulty in landing in Surat. Keeping this in mind, the Surat airport authorities are now planning to get ISO certification, which will not only help the airport but also the city.

Sources at the Surat airport said that currently, work on system development is in progress and will complete in just eight months. For ISO certification of Integrated Management System (IMS), the airport needs to work on quality management system (QMI), environment management system (EMI) and occupational health and safety management system (OHSAS). In India, only four airports have IMS certification and they are Ahmedabad, Indore, Guwahati and Indore.

After completion of the channel work, the Surat Airport officials will issue tenders to the accreditation certification bodies for their visit and survey.

Surat airport controller, Ashok Verma, said, “For IMS certification, we have to work simultaneously for getting certifications like QMI, EMI and OHSAS. We have already started work on this.”

He added: “This certification will benefit the airport as it will get many domestic and international flights. Moreover, the city will also get many industries. As the economic capital of Gujarat, the business turnover in Surat is the highest, and the rate of growth and development work is also the fastest here.”