Prime Minister Narendra Modi would inaugurate the State’s second airport at Jharsuguda in July. The exactdate of inauguration is yet to be fixed. In 2014, the State Government had signed an MoU with the Airport Authorities of India (AAI) for the airport and subsequently provided additional 176 acres of land for this purpose. Now, the airport would be operational on a sprawling area of 295 acres.
“After completion of all civil and technical works, the airport now waits for formal inauguration,” informed a senior officer of the Jharsuguda Airport. “The AAI has also provided the requisite licence for operation and we just wait for the inauguration. Now, B-767 and A-320 planes can land and take off from this airport,” he added.
The history of Jharsuguda Airport dates back to 1942 when war planes were operating during the Second World War. After the First World War, the Royal Airport Authority, feeling the geographical importance of Jharsuguda started construction of the airport that came to immense use in the Second World War.
locals further recall that during Indo-Pak war in 1971, few war planes had also landed here.
