By IANS
Kannur (Kerala) : A two-decade wait for the people of Kannur district in Kerala finally bore fruit when the Indian cabinet Thursday gave its nod for a greenfield airport to be set up here.
The airport will come up on 2,000-acre land at Moorkanparambu at Mattannur, around 25 km from Kannur town.
Reacting to the government’s decision, North Malabar Chamber of Commerce (NMCC) president Mahesh Chandra Baliga said the airport would give impetus to tourism and to exports from the region.
“The NMCC has been campaigning for the airport since 1984,” Baliga added.
Many perceive that the Kannur airport will not be a feasible idea as two other airports, Calicut International Airport and Mangalore Airport, are located within 130 km distance.
However, Baliga dismisses this. “The airport will be a profitable venture. A good number of those who are using Calicut airport are from Kannur region. Most of the travellers are NRIs from Gulf.”
“People who come home for visit for a short period now have to spend almost a day travelling to the airports at Calicut or Mangalore. All these passengers will use the Kannur airport once it becomes operational,” said Baliga.
Kannur airport is being set up with the participation of private sector. The project cost is estimated at Rs.9.2 billion ($238 million).
Kannur is famous for its home furnishing textile products. The airport is expected to strengthen textile export from the region.
“The sanction for airport is a welcome development. Since our roads are in bad shape, none of our clients are ready to come here. Now, every week, I go to Delhi just to show our products to potential foreign customers. They are not ready to come here as there is no direct air connectivity,” says M.P. Ranjith Kumar of Kannur Handloom Exports.
“Kannur airport can expect a good volume of NRIs from Gulf. Everyday, new group of people are travelling from here to Gulf,” he says.
Kannur district panchayat president K.K. Narayanan said Kannur airport would face no dearth of passengers. “People from Karnataka staying near to Kerala border will also use the airport once it is commissioned,” he said.