Around Rs 600 crore will be spent by the Airports Authority of India to build a new terminal and set up allied infrastructure at the Bagdogra airport. This means that there will be a 12-fold increase in the size of the terminal and a jump in the annual passenger traffic capacity by 17 times.
The present terminal is spread over around 8,000 square metres, which after the expansion will be increased to 1 lakh square metres. The building will have the capacity to handle 1.25 crore passengers a year.
Darjeeling MP Raju Bista, who is also the chairman of the Bagdogra Airport Advisory Committee, said the proposed expansion would change the travelling experience at Bagdogra.
It is to be noted, after the Bengal government waived surcharge on aviation turbine fuel at Bagdogra in the year 2013, the number of flights has gone up from 10-11 a day to 37. Making Bagdogra the 15th busiest airport in India.
Not only this, the installation of the Instrument Landing System (ILS), which helps in landing and take-off in low visibility, and the Centre’s decision to allow flights to operate in the evenings, also helped Bagdogra climb up in the chart of busy airports.
As of now, flights from Paro-Bhutan to Bangkok and vice-versa make a stopover at Bagdogra. However, with the expansion plan, the tourism stakeholders have demanded the introduction of international flights, especially from Bangladesh and Nepal.