Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad
(Hyderabad)
Anubhuti Vishnoi

TILL recently this was an expanse of 5,495 acres of undulating land marked with hillocks. Today, it is the gleaming glass façade of Hyderabad’s new international airport, 25 km away from the existing Begumpet airport. About 63,500 cubic metres of reinforced cement concrete, 10,000 metric tonnes of reinforcement steel, 20,000 sq metres of glass, 13,500 sq m of metal cladding and 1,35,00 sq mt of formwork have been layered over each other painstakingly by more than 10,000 engineers, consultants, contractors, managers and labourers to create India’s first greenfield airport (one that is built from scratch on greenfield land), entirely through a public-private partnership.
Barely a week from the landing of the first commercial flight—a Lufthansa on midnight of March 16—the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport looks like an airport caught in a hurry. Mounds of mud dot the road to the airport being extensively landscaped, palm trees are being planted along the avenue leading to the massive integrated terminal’s entry, earthmovers, cranes, labourers—everyone is running against time while an iconic 75-mt Air Control Traffic tower lords over it all.
Inside the integrated terminal, 8,500 people are working round the clock—the retail and duty-free shopping sections are being done up block by block, eateries Hard Rock Café, Bollywood Bar and Hyderabadi Biryani from the famous Paradise are gearing up for the big day, while night drills, commissioning drills, airport readiness checks and surprise drills keep the staff at the airport on its toes.
A 360-degree zoom-in at the airport reminds you of JFK or may be Heathrow or…it’s just probably the strong swanky international accent that runs through the terminal area. All matte steel and glass with a ceiling that lets in ample natural light, an entrance overarched by a white tensile roof, an internal garden a la Singapore’s Changi airport with creepers climbing up the walls between conveyer belts, an inline baggage checking system which means it’s goodbye to the X Ray baggage check system—you walk in right to the check in counters and leave your check in baggage there which will go through a four-level inline screening system while you proceed to the boarding area. You’ll only have to bother with it again if there is some ‘offensive’ or dangerous object found in it. Those with only hand baggage can check in through separate counters and walk in to the boarding area and turn right for international destinations or left for domestic ones.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, the airport gets test passengers with baggage for the drills, checking for any deficiencies.
Rajagopal Swami, chief financial officer and company secretary of the airport, is watching it all with ‘‘a mixture of feelings’’.
“I saw this place when the ground was not even levelled. It took a year to level the surface by some 1,000 men on earthmovers and road rollers. So there is nostalgia, a huge amount of elation and a lot of nervousness.. There are the weekly drills every Tuesday and Thursday, which are looking good…the CISF is also set to take over. The passengers as they step in here will be surprised at the variety on offer. We have ensured it’s no less than Singapore’s Changi airport, so expect the best,” says Swami.
With the longest runway in the country at 4,260m, a taxiway just as long and capable of doubling up as a runway in emergency, the new airport is capable of comfortably hosting the mega machine A320 besides 12 million passengers per annum and 100,000 metric tonnes of cargo in its first phase.. It will open this month to eight domestic airlines and 11 international airlines connecting it to 35 destinations.
“On March 16 when we open to commercial operations we hope to receive some 25,000 passengers,” adds Swami.
With 130 check in counters, 12 self check-in kiosks and 46 immigration counters, the terminal facing a car part that can accommodate 3,700 vehicles, attached with a 308-room business hotel and 42 aircraft parking slots on the airside and a single entry area for domestic and international passengers, a ‘quiet airport’ concept with least possible announcements, 12 aerobridges connected to boarding area, seating for 3,200 passengers per hour, separate kids-only washrooms and 3,400 sq m of duty free shopping walkthroughs, GMR promises users will feel the difference when they enter this Rs 2,478 crore airport. The only thing missing probably is the local flavour but officials assure that six months down the airport will look every bit a ‘Hyderabadi’ airport even with its strong international stamp.
The airport has been created through a public-private joint venture between GMR Group, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad, the state Government of Andhra Pradesh and Airports Authority of India (AAI). GMR Group holds 63 per cent of the equity, MAHB 11 per cent, while the Government of Andhra Pradesh and Airports Authority of India each hold 13 per cent. All parties claim this one is India’s sure shot entry ticket into the snazzy world of international style airports.
Its phase II will start only once the growth figure of 17-18 million passenger per annum is reached and then a ‘mirror image’ of the existing airport will be created at the same site just opposite this terminal with a second runway and passenger terminal building. Meanwhile, GMR is planning a rail link to the airport that will come up over another three to four years.
‘’I know the new airport will be far but I am sure it will also be far better than the one I have to use almost every second week for my office trips to Mumbai. I am sure looking forward to a more international airport,’’ says Shamli Gupta, a Hyderabad resident.
It’s easy to understand why Gupta will go that extra mile to Shamshabad only when we check in at the existing Begumpet airport for the morning flight back to Delhi. Its cramped terminal, inadequate seating, crowded check-in and ugly washrooms suddenly seem far more obsolete than usual.

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