Nearly eight months after it went international, the Visakhapatnam
Airport is not yet ready for international cargo exports. Red-tape is said to
be coming in the way of airport development and unless something is done on a
war-footing the development of the region will remain a cry in the wild.
Undue delay
The undue delay in commencement of round-the-clock operations and lack
of facilities for export of international cargo is making new international
airline operators as also cargo exporters to shy away from the airport.
There is a huge demand for air exports from the city.
The location of two ports – Visakhapatnam Port Trust and Gangavaram Port
– in the city and two other ports at Kakinada indicate the tremendous export
potential. In the absence of facilities to handle international cargo, the Air
India flight to Dubai and the Silk Air flight to Singapore have been deprived
of a chance to carry cargo to international destinations.
Modifications to the old terminal building to convert it into a cargo
complex is estimated to cost Rs.50 lakh and the work for ground handling is
ready.
The Airport Authority of India (AAI) Headquarters in Delhi has to place
orders for procurement of equipment like scanners required by the airport.
E. Sai Pharma is exporting around 2 tonnes of drugs to Tokyo every week
from the city. In the absence of export facilities from here, the company is
transporting the material by road to Hyderabad and from there by air.
Customs clearance
“A Drugs Controller has to be posted at the airport for clearance of the
drugs meant for export. Customs clearance for exports is not a problem for us
as we are located in the SEZ and our material is cleared by Customs officials
at the factory itself,” Sunil Lamba, Managing Director of E. Sai Pharma told The Hindu on
Thursday.
“Silk Air is losing 2 tonnes of cargo a week due to the absence of
dedicated cargo handling facility at the airport.
Urgent need
There is an urgent need to develop dedicated bulk cargo handling
facilities,” says Rushikonda IT Parks Association vice president O. Naresh
Kumar.
One can only hope that the Vizag-based export cargo doesn’t take wings
from other airports.
· There is
a huge demand for air exports from the city
· Modifications
to the old terminal is estimated to cost Rs.50 lakh
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/city-air-cargo-complex-yet-to-take-wing/article4125829.ece
No comments:
Post a Comment