Is Revival Of World War-II Airstrip In Odisha On Track? Know What Civil Aviation Minister Has To Say

Bhubaneswar: The Ministry of Civil Aviation has approached the Ministry of Defence to consider the request of the Odisha government for granting permission to develop and use Amarda airstrip at Rasgobindpur in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district as a full-fledged airport, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Gen VK Singh informed on Monday.

He was replying to a question by Odisha MP Amar Patnaik in Rajya Sabha on steps being taken to revive the defunct airstrip and delay in issuing NOC for flight operation under RCS-UDAN.

Singh said the airstrip has been included in the UDAN scheme document and Airports Authority of India (AAI), the implementing agency, had received one bid for Bhubaneshwar to Amarda (Rasgovindpur) and vice versa route.

He clarified that an airport, which is included in the awarded routes of UDAN and requires upgradation/development for commencement of RCS operations, is developed under the ‘Revival of unserved and underserved airports’ scheme.

The multi-disciplinary team of AAI, which visited Amarda Airstrip (Rasgovindpur) on September 16, 2021, and conducted an inspection of the existing site along with State Revenue Department officials, has given a green signal for the proposed airport, he said.

Elaborating on the recommendation of the AAI, the Union Minister said that the development of Amarda airport was technically feasible subject to OLS surveys, NOC from the Minister of Defence and compliance with other statutory/extant guidelines in the matter.

It had also suggested the need for additional land for IFR operations of Code C aircraft and proper coordination/approval of the Ministry for Amarda airport.

“UDAN is a market-driven scheme. Interested airlines based on their assessment of demand on particular routes submit their proposals at the time of bidding under UDAN. Jharsuguda, Rourkela, Utkela, Jeypore and Rangeilunda are the airports that have been identified/awarded under UDAN,” he added.

Amarda Road, Angul, Barbil, Birasal, Gudari, Hirakund, Jayakpur, Jeypore, Lanjigarh, Nawapara, Padampur, Rairangpur, Raisuan, Rangeilunda, Sukinda, Theruboli, Tushra And Utkela are the unserved Airports available in the UDAN Scheme document for the state. A total of 60 routes have been awarded under UDAN for Odhisha and 18 have been operationalised till date, he added.

Notably, this airstrip was built during the Second World War (1939-45) as a forward airfield against the Japanese conquest of Burma. The large strip was used as a landing ground for planes and a training space for special bombing missions. Its runway, which is over 3.5km, is the longest runway in Asia. However, it was abandoned after the war, historian Anil Dhir had earlier told the media.

“Very few people knew that the Odisha skies had seen the crash of two giant aircraft, which had collided against each other and resulted in the deaths of 14 airmen,” he added.

In September last year, Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti and Tribal affairs Bishweswar Tudu had informed that the renovation work of the Brithish-era airstrip will start in 2022 under the UDAN scheme. The airport would be used both for defence and commercial purposes, he added.

Group Captain Bikash Kanungo told The Telegraph that Kalaikunda was one of the strategically important Air Force stations, located at around 140km from Amarda airstrip. “There is no airbase south of Kalaikunda. If the Amarda airbase is developed, it will be helpful in recovering any fighter plane in case of an emergency.”