Ahead of the Bengal Assembly elections, demands for resuming operations at the Balurghat Airport have resurfaced once again. The Union Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region, Sukanta Majumdar submitted a letter to Union Civil Aviation Minister, Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, urging the resumption of flight services on Thursday in Delhi. He had made a similar request earlier.
District TMC president Subhas Bhawal criticised the move, saying that the BJP minister raised similar concerns before the Lok Sabha elections, and the same issue is being repeated before the Assembly elections as well.
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Airport remains non-operational for decades
Balurghat Airport is located in the district's Mahinagar area. Spread over approximately 152 acres, it has a 1,495-metre runway. While large aircraft cannot operate from the airport, small aircraft can use the runway. Despite having facilities such as an airstrip, passenger lounge and air traffic infrastructure, the airport has remained non-operational for a long time. No flights have operated from there in the past 35 years.
Political claims over responsibility
Allegations have surfaced that demands for restarting flights gain momentum ahead of elections but lose traction afterwards. Addressing the issue, Sukanta Majumdar said that twelve years ago, the Centre had handed over the airport to the state government on a 30-year lease for just ₹1. He added that although the state built the runway, no further progress has been made there over the past 12 years.
