Shillong, Nov 20: A little more than a fortnight after he said that the Umroi Airport expansion project was on track, Deputy Chief Minister and Transport Minister Sniawbhalang Dhar today said that the tender had to be cancelled because of certain complications and the process restarted.
“We are in the process of floating a new tender. Once it is allotted, the work will begin. It should happen within this year,” he told reporters.
As per the guidelines of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), the contractor selected for the project will get 18 months from the date of the work order to complete the expansion. “AAI has clearly informed us that the project must be completed within 18 months after issuing the work order,” Dhar added.
The expansion project, estimated at Rs 119.44 crore, includes extending the runway by 571 metres, taking the total length to 2,400 metres. The plan also involves improving the terminal building, apron and other infrastructure so that jet aeroplanes can operate from the airport.
The state government has already approved the purchase of 11.75 acres of land for the project at a cost of Rs 72.17 crore.
On Baljek (also known as Jengjal) Airport in West Garo Hills, the Deputy CM said that a joint inspection by AAI officials and the state government is still pending. This inspection is necessary to identify how much additional land is required. Responding to a query about the request for Rs 50 crore for the project, Dhar said they cannot proceed until experts from AAI visit the site.
“We are waiting for the joint inspection. We need AAI experts to guide us on the exact requirements before we move ahead with land acquisition,” he said. Dhar added that funding is not an issue; the delay is mainly because the technical team from AAI has yet to confirm the feasibility and alignment of the expansion.
It was as recently as Monday that Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma spoke about the project, saying that the government would sanction the Rs 50 crore this month.
