You'll miss this world-class feel at upcoming airports, as government decides against privatisation, thanks to pressure from the Left parties
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Due to persistent objection by the Left parties to 'commercial exploitation' as a result of airport privatisation, the government has decided against allowing private operators to manage airports in the future. However, it is the private operators that are responsible for the new swanky airport buildings as in the case of Mumbai Airportu00a0and Delhi International Airport.
Passengers travelling via the existing Mumbai airport will continue to get a corporate feel, thanks to the private sector involvement through Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL). But analysts say the planned second airport building at Navi Mumbai and 35 other non-metro airports may not be similar.
Prior to 2006, when a consortium led by the GVK GROUP took over the airport management, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) maintained the Mumbai airport poorly. "The privatisation of Mumbai airport has helped in its modernisation. The government did this to attract investment and make airports world-class," said Sudhakar Reddy, president of Air passengers Association of India.
"Mumbai airport will not be affected by the government's decision. The existing agreement with AAI will continue to be in effect," said an MIAL official. Analysts with the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation said that allowing private consortiums to operate airport buildings and allied ground infrastructure would have brought in an investment of at least Rs 3,000 crore.
"There is still some confusion about projects that have already been announced, including the Navi Mumbai airport for which land has been acquired," said a state urban development official.
Under a cloud?
The State has appointed CIDCO as the nodal agency for the Navi Mumbai airport.
This Rs 9,970-crore project, scheduled to be ready by 2012, is supposed to be executed through public-private partnership. But, Left parties, backed AAI unions, have promised to keep private parties out.
Existing airport consortiums
Maytas Infra Ltd (owned by the family of Ramalingam Raju of Satyam fame) Tata-Changi Airport consortium, the Reliance-Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, GMR Infrastructure Ltd, and Larsen and Toubro Ltd, or L&T.u00a0 Fraport AG, Lanco Infratech Ltd and Genting International (Singapore) Ltd. They are also the possible bidders for the Navi Mumbai airport.
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