chief
Prime VIP
New Delhi, August 13
The glitzy new terminal T3 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport is not yet ready to take on full-scale operations. Domestic operations are likely to shift to T3 only after mid-September and not on August 27, as earlier planned by Delhi International Airport Ltd. (DIAL), due to, among other problems, erratic power and water supply at the airport.
The decision was taken by Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Thursday evening after reviewing the preparedness of various stakeholders for effecting the transition. The position will be reviewed in mid-September, following which a decision on shifting domestic operations to T3 will be taken.
One of largest airport terminals in the world with an integrated facility for both international and domestic flights, T3 was formally inaugurated on July 3 by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Following this, DIAL carried out a series of proving flights on July 14 and 15. International operations were shifted to the new facility on July 27.
Passengers are facing several problems, including a long wait at the baggage retrieval section despite the state-of-art baggage system put in place by developers. Several passengers were reported to have even missed connecting flights due to delays. An unclear route to the new terminal was among other problems faced by passengers.
After reviewing the situation, the high-level team of officials from the Civil Aviation Ministry felt erratic power supply was affecting sophisticated baggage handling and security equipment. Besides, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) had also not been able to keep its commitment of water supply at the Airport.
It was felt that for reliable and un-interrupted power supply to meet extra electricity requirement arising out of added domestic operations from T3, commissioning of the impending 220 KVA sub-station of Delhi Transco Ltd. (DTL) was an inevitable requirement. Though the sub-station was to be commissioned by July 31 as per earlier plan, the DTL representative stated it would be ready only by September 15.
It was also observed that DJB had not been able to provide the supply of three MLD water to airports as committed earlier. The water supply at the airport continued to be erratic and much less than required. Regarding the alternative connectivity from the present domestic side of the airport, the team assessed that the underpass connecting the Dwarka junction to the Central Spine at Mahipalpur that leads to T3 also needed to be complete before domestic operations could be shifted to T3. This road will help ease traffic congestion as currently there is only one approach to T3 which is via NH-8.
The glitzy new terminal T3 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport is not yet ready to take on full-scale operations. Domestic operations are likely to shift to T3 only after mid-September and not on August 27, as earlier planned by Delhi International Airport Ltd. (DIAL), due to, among other problems, erratic power and water supply at the airport.
The decision was taken by Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Thursday evening after reviewing the preparedness of various stakeholders for effecting the transition. The position will be reviewed in mid-September, following which a decision on shifting domestic operations to T3 will be taken.
One of largest airport terminals in the world with an integrated facility for both international and domestic flights, T3 was formally inaugurated on July 3 by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Following this, DIAL carried out a series of proving flights on July 14 and 15. International operations were shifted to the new facility on July 27.
Passengers are facing several problems, including a long wait at the baggage retrieval section despite the state-of-art baggage system put in place by developers. Several passengers were reported to have even missed connecting flights due to delays. An unclear route to the new terminal was among other problems faced by passengers.
After reviewing the situation, the high-level team of officials from the Civil Aviation Ministry felt erratic power supply was affecting sophisticated baggage handling and security equipment. Besides, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) had also not been able to keep its commitment of water supply at the Airport.
It was felt that for reliable and un-interrupted power supply to meet extra electricity requirement arising out of added domestic operations from T3, commissioning of the impending 220 KVA sub-station of Delhi Transco Ltd. (DTL) was an inevitable requirement. Though the sub-station was to be commissioned by July 31 as per earlier plan, the DTL representative stated it would be ready only by September 15.
It was also observed that DJB had not been able to provide the supply of three MLD water to airports as committed earlier. The water supply at the airport continued to be erratic and much less than required. Regarding the alternative connectivity from the present domestic side of the airport, the team assessed that the underpass connecting the Dwarka junction to the Central Spine at Mahipalpur that leads to T3 also needed to be complete before domestic operations could be shifted to T3. This road will help ease traffic congestion as currently there is only one approach to T3 which is via NH-8.
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