New terminal building to be built at Imphal international airport at a cost of Rs 500 cr

Guwahati (Assam) [India], October 19 : The Airports Authority of India (AAI) on Wednesday said that a new airport terminal building would be constructed with all modern facilities at Imphal International airport. The authority also said that the new-constructed airport -- Hollongi Airport -- which is 25 km from Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh would be operational soon.
AAI Regional Executive Director Sanmukh Jugani informed media persons at a conference in Guwahati that the construction of a new integrated terminal building (NITB) with technical block cum Air Traffic Control tower and apron-linked taxiway and associated city works would be taken up at the Imphal International Airport, Manipur. He also said the cost of the project is about Rs 500 crore and the new terminal building will be spread over 22,000 sq m, which will have world class passenger facilities. Work has already been awarded and it is expected to be completed in 24 months.
The NITB will be able to cater to around 800 passengers during peak-hour flight operations, according to the executive director. The annual passenger capacity of this NITB will be around 2.5 million passengers per annum. The ATC control tower cum technical block will be a six-storey building of 40-meter height. He also added the service Building of the airport will be built over 2,152 sq m. A new apron and taxiways will also be built with total number of eight Stands for Code -C type aircrafts- Airbus A 320 and Boeing 737.
The executive director also said that Hollongi Airport would be operational soon.
Hollongi Airport
Hollongi was selected as site for the greenfield airport of Itanagar in July 2012 and is situated at Hollongi village, Yupia Tehsil, Papum Pare district of Arunachal Pradesh.
The government of Arunachal Pradesh approved Hollongi airport project in May 2018. A detailed project report was completed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for the project in August 2018. Environment clearance and in-principle approval by concerned ministries were given in December 2018. Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the development of the Hollongi Airport in February 2019.
Hollongi Airport, also called Donyi Polo Airport, is a much-needed one in view of the fact that the capital of Arunachal, Itanagar, doesn't had an airport. An Airport of such capacity to get directly connected by air to other major cities of the country and within Northeast Region.
Currently, the nearest airport to Itanagar is Lilabari Airport in Assam which is at 73 km by road and it takes 2 hours to reach the airport from Itanagar. Hollongi Airport is spread over 694 acres and is provided with 2,300-m runway and other facilities to handle A 320 type of aircraft which can carry about 180 passengers.
In another development, budget carrier IndiGo on Tuesday successfully test-landed its aircraft at the newly-constructed Donyi Polo Airport, which is located at Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh, which was reported by ANI. With this, the air connectivity of Arunachal Pradesh will begin on October 28, informed by the sources.
Imphal Airport
AAI had said that the cargo complex at the Imphal Airport is being built at a cost of about Rs 16 crore of which physical progress of over 69 per cent has been completed and is expected to be completed by March 31, 2023. The cargo complex will have a capacity of 1,05,120 mt/annum. The present terminal building at Imphal Airport caters to around 250 arrivals and 250 departures during peak hours. It is designed for passenger-handling capacity of 0.6 million per annum.