Airport privatisation: Govt slashes fund need for projects

Even as the government has brought back on the table its plans to privatise Chennai and Kolkata airports, it has nearly halved fresh investments required to be made by private concessionaires for developing the airports at Chennai, Kolkata, Jaipur and Ahmedabad in next three to five years.
The move has raised questions from certain quarters within the ministry itself over the need for putting them up for privatisation. A senior official in the Airports Authority of India (AAI), said, “What is the need of privatising Chennai and Kolkata airports when we have already made huge investments in upgrading them?”
AAI has already invested Rs 2,700 crore and Rs 2,400 crore for expanding capacity and upgrading Kolkata and the Chennai airports, respectively. AAI is sitting on cash reserves of Rs 2,400 crore and, if required, can raise resources to meet planned development works at Chennai and Kolkata (totalling Rs 867 crore).

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