By TwoCircles.net Staff Correspondent,
Kozhikode: In what brought cheers to the expatriates, Hajj and Umra pilgrims from Kerala, the partial closure of the Calicut International Airport at Karipur has been postponed beyond Hajj pilgrimage and busy Gulf season.
As per the information passed on by R K Srivastava, chairman of the Airports Authority of India (AAI), to E Ahmed, Malappuram MP, the re-carpeting works, scheduled to be started on May 1, has been postponed to September. The decision was initiated after the sufferings of the Hajj pilgrims from Malabar were brought to the notice of AAI, a statement from Ahmed’s office said.
Minister P K Kunhalikkutty inaugurating the draw of lot for selecting the Haj pilgrims of this year at Karippur Haj House (TCN file photo)
The re-carpeting was proposed as the surface of the runway was found inadequate to bear the weight of the wide-winged-bodied aircraft. The Airports Authority of India had maintained that the need to strengthen the runway was high as the earlier work was done way back in 2009.
The decision to partially close the airport from May 1 to October 1 and to impose a total ban on wide-winged-bodied aircraft on account of the re-carpeting of the runway had adversely affected the functioning of the airport causing trouble to fliers and disrupting the cargo movement.
Citing that it coincides with the commencement of the busy ‘Gulf season’, various organisations were raising demands to postpone the re-carpeting works. It was warned that banning large aircraft from operating from the airport during re-carpeting period would result in shortage of seats, leading to skyrocketing of ticket fares during the summer school vacation in GCC, Umrah, Eid-ul-fitr, Onam and Haj season from May to October.
Minister for Airports K Babu and M K Raghavan had demanded the Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju to extend the closure. An official level meeting was also convened by the Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to resolve the crisis. In a bid to ease the sufferings of the pilgrims from Malabar, the Kerala State Hajj Committee had also demanded the Civil Aviation Ministry to take a favourable decision for the Hajj pilgrims.
As the meeting failed to bear fruit, the Kerala State Hajj Committee had taken steps to shift the Hajj camp to Kochi.
The decision by the Civil Aviation Ministry and the Airport Authority of India has been widely hailed by the people’s representatives and various organisations.
The Malabar Chamber of Commerce hailed the decision. “The expatriates were about to be left to suffer as the summer school vacation in various Gulf countries coincided with the earlier announced dates of the partial closure of the airport (from May 1 to October 1). The earlier decision was about to cause problems to Hajj and Umra pilgrims travelling to and from the Malabar region. The decision has brought cheers to the expatriate community and pilgrims,” the release by the Chamber said.
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Temporary closure of Calicut airport to affect Hajj pilgrims