Navi Mumbai international airport will be operational in 2024: Devendra Fadnavis

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said in Pune that the under-construction Navi Mumbai international airport will become operational in 2024.The minister made the comment while addressing the Maratha Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA).

The new airport was proposed in 1997 and received the government's approval in 2007. The project got delayed due to the land acquisition issues securing necessary government permissions, including the environmental clearance.

The Navi Mumbai Airport project will be carried out on a public-private partnership model and the City and Industrial and Development Corporation (Cidco), which is the project implementation agency, will incur pre-development work costs.

Devendra Fadnavis also said that the "industrial culture" of Maharashtra will be back on track soon. "Every stakeholder has to unite and work hard to make Maharashtra number one again," he added.

Devendra Fadnavis highlighted important projects like Pune Metro, EV transportation etc and said the ring road will prove to be the growth engine for the Pune region.

He said the government has acknowledged the urgent need for the Purandar airport in the Pune district and that the government is taking efforts for the same. He also said the government is planning a logistics hub at Purandar along with the airport.

There is a need to connect the Navi Mumbai and Purandar airports. "Maharashtra's economy should reach USD one trillion if India has to achieve the USD 5 trillion target," the Deputy CM said.

He stressed the importance of the Pune Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (PMRDA) and Mumbai Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) for infrastructure and said Maharashtra is the startup capital of India. "15,000 out of 18,000 startups are from Maharashtra besides 25 out of 100 unicorns. We want to ease connectivity and approach to all MIDCs. We should bring more investment in the fintech sector," he added.

* With inputs from agencies