PUNE: Lamenting the inordinate delays in construction of new international airport in Chakan, near Pune, Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Monday said lack of new airports coming up in Pune-Mumbai region was his biggest regret.

“Although the project to build Chakan airport is in place for a long time, we have still not seen any new airport coming up in the Pune-Mumbai region. This is my biggest moment of sadness, mainly because I am from Maharashtra,” Patel told reporters.

He was speaking at a press interaction after inaugurating a three-day executive programme on ‘Airports and airlines systems,’ launched jointly by Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Office of Professional Education and Lavasa Corporation. Lavasa is the first hill city being developed by the Hindustan Constructions Company (HCC) near Pune.

“It is surprising to see that there is no new airport coming up, including Chakan, despite government’s greenfield (new) airport project in place. Singapore’s Changi Airport International through a consortium is building new airports in West Bengal’s Durgapur and Asansol, and Ludhiana in Punjab,” Patel said.

Closer home, the government has approved a greenfield airport at Sawantwadi in Konkan region of Maharashtra.

“Pune requires a second airport to provide better connectivity. With growing number of international companies and educational institutes like MIT showing a keen interest in India, especially in Pune region, the private sector should make use of government’s new greenfield projects policy, which encourages private investment in development of airport infrastructure in the country,” Patel said, citing example of how Lavasa city is being set up as a purely private project.

The Minister said that the City and Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco), the township and industrial infrastructure arm of the Maharashtra government, has completed 75 per cent of land acquisition for the proposed international airport at Navi Mumbai.

“Tenders for the proposed Navi Mumbai airport are likely to be floated in the next six months and the project is very much on track. The airport is already delayed by three years. We expect the first phase to be operational by 2013. We are awaiting the final clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forest,” the minister said.

Patel said he was likely to hold a meeting on the issue with the Maharashtra government next week.

Lavasa -MIT PE together

Lavasa and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Office of Professional Education (MIT PE) have collaborated for the first time to present a three-day Executive Programme in Airport and Airlines Systems on Monday.

“Lavasa city is emerging as an education hub in the country and is poised to provide multiple learning opportunities. This collaboration with MIT comes at an opportune moment as giant strides made by India, in areas of science and technology has produced a critical mass of talented resource pool in India,” Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Praful Patel said.

Such specialised initiatives are critical in providing a positive direction to the human resource capital of India, he said.

“At least two to three lakh Indian students go abroad every year for higher education. Now we are seeing top international educational institutes like MIT coming to our doorsteps. This augurs well for country's educational future,” the minister said.