CM flags off work on Shivamogga airport

Shivamogga: Chief minister BS Yediyurappa inaugurated the much-awaited Shivamogga Airport work through video conferencing from Bengaluru on Monday. Rural development and panchayat raj minister KS Eshwarappa and Shivamogga MP BY Raghavendra were present at the ground-breaking ceremony at Shivamogga.
It was Yediyurappa who had laid the foundation stone for the work in 2008 during his first tenure as CM.Work for the Rs 220 crore airport at Sogane village was delayed due to various reasons.
The work will be carried out in two phases and should be completed within the stipulated time of 18 months without any compromise on quality, Yediyurappa said.
“The long cherished dream of people of Shivamogga about having an airport is finally becoming a reality,’’ said Yediyurappa after launching the project. The project was planned when he was deputy CM in 2006 but had failed to take off for different reasons.
Along with the airport work, Yediyurappa also inaugurated the section office of the National Highway Authority in Shivamogga to speed up delayed NH roads and bridges.
Eshwarappa said, “More industries are expected to come up in the district. The airport will create more employment opportunities for youths.” MP Raghavendra also spoke.
Seeking wings
The work is being carried out in two phases. In the first phase, the construction of the runway, taxiway, apron, approach road, peripheral road, and compound walls will be completed. In the second phase the terminal building, air traffic control (ATC) tower and fire station building will be constructed.
The site for the airport is about 12km from Shivamogga. As much as 662.38 acres of land has already acquired for the project and an additional 108 acres is under advanced stage of acquisition.