Kerala CM says government is planning four airstrips in state

Thiruvananthapuram: The government is planning to construct four airstrips in the state, including in Idukki , Wayanad and Kasaragod , chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

In the upcoming episode of his weekly television programme ‘Naam Munnottu’, the chief minister said that the government was only getting into the practical side of these proposed projects.

He said that the proposed Sabarimala airport project would not only benefit the Sabarimala visitors, but also those from areas like Thiruvalla and Chengannur. He added that the number of domestic air travellers was on the rise every year.

Vijayan said that the latest airport in the state, Kannur, was witnessing an increase in the number of passengers. He said that there should be more flights connecting the existing airports and the government was in continuous discussions with the ministry of civil aviation in this regard.

The proposed airstrip at Periye in Kasaragod is expected to become a feeder unit for Kannur, Kozhikode, Mangaluru and Bengaluru airports. The government has completed the survey and is moving at a fast pace about acquiring the 80 acres required for the project.

The government already owns 23 acres for the project, the idea of which dates back to almost two decades, during the tenure of E K Nayanar as the chief minister. The airstrip is also meant for projecting Bekal as a major international tourism hub. In March last year, the government had decided to revive the air-strip projects at Anakkara in Idukki and at Panamaram in Wayanad that were once shelved due to local protests. The government has asked the Cochin International Airport Ltd to conduct a pre-feasibility study of the projects.

The CM said that since the roads to Wayanad were continuously getting damaged during rains, the government was planning a tunnel road to Wayanad. A proposal to construct a road from Kannur to Wayanad is also under consideration of the government, he said.