TEZU, Sep 24: Union Minister of Civil Aviation & Steel, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, on Sunday inaugurated the newly constructed state-of-the-art terminal building at Tezu Airport, in presence of Deputy Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Chowna Mein.
The new domestic terminal building has an area of 4000 sq metres with a peak hour capacity of 300 passengers annually. It also houses five check-in counters, with three more to be added in the future. Additionally, the terminal has two arrival carousels and two aircraft parking bays for ATR-72 type aircraft.
During the program, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia emphasised on the enhanced capability of Tezu Airport with the addition of the new terminal building, which is also the second civil terminal in the state of Arunachal Pradesh under Airports Authority of India. He opined that it will greatly increase tourist footfall in the region and add on to the regional economy.
Scindia, also mentioned that under the 'double-engine' government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Pema Khandu, development in Arunachal Pradesh has already achieved significant strides and will continue to soar greater heights. He also emphasised that in the nine years of Modi Sarkar, 75 new airports have been constructed in the entire nation, adding to a total of 137 airports, along with 17 Airports in North East India and 4 airports (including ALGs) in Arunachal Pradesh that were constructed in the past nine years.
He also termed North East as the ‘Hira’ (meaning diamond) of India citing HIRA stands for Highway, Internet, Railway and Aviation and reiterated PM Modi’s commitment of making it a new engine of growth for India. He further said that the NE region will become the gateway of India in days to come as it has the potential for Trade, Agri & Horticulture Produces, etc.
Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein said that the Tezu Airport holds immense importance owing to its strategic location, connecting various tourist destinations such as Dong Valley, Mayudia, Parshuram Kund, Namdapha Tiger Reserve, Bhismaknagar and many more.
Reflecting on the history of Tezu Airport, Mein added that it has undergone a long journey. Initially built during 1963-67, the airport was operated by the Indian Air Force until 2004. Subsequently, it was transferred to the Airport Authority of India, but remained inactive for civil operations. He also mentioned that during 1985-86, the Airport Authority of India constructed a temporary Civil Terminal Building, which was utilized by Indian Airlines D-27 (Fokker) Aircraft, serving as a 25-seater aircraft connecting Mohanbari to Tezu.
Mein added that the Civil Terminal building at Walong has also been completed, while works at Tuting and Mechukha advanced landing grounds (ALGs) are currently in progress and highlighted that the state government has invested a total of Rs 229 Crore in the Civil Aviation Sector over the last seven years.
To ensure seamless all-weather flight operations, Mein appealed to the  Ministry of Civil Aviation to provide and facilitate the installation of necessary navigational equipment such as ILS, VOR (Very High-Frequency Omni Range) approach, DME (Distance Measuring Equipment), etc., at Tezu and Pasighat Airports.
He further requested the Ministry to intervene and extend support for the development of civil terminal infrastructure at Vijaynagar ALG and also urged for the establishment of ALGs at Alinye, near Anini in Dibang Valley District, and at Zimthung, Dirang.  "The operationalisation of these ALGs would serve both defence purposes and civilian needs," he added. 
As part of his visit to Arunachal Pradesh, Scindia also took a tour of Mekelang village in Tezu on foot and inspected several infrastructure projects and schemes such as the PMGSY road, PM-Awas Yojana and Har Ghar Jal Yojana under JJM. He also distributed Ayushman Bharat Health Cards to the beneficiaries and visited and interacted with the children of Anganwadi centre and beneficiaries of various welfare schemes in the area.
The inauguration program was also attended by Civil Aviation Minister, Nakap Nalo, MP (Lok Sabha) Tapir Gao, MP (Rajya Sabha) Nabam Rebia, MLAs Karikho Kri, Chau Zingnu Namchoom & Dasanglu Pul, Secretary Civil Aviation, GoI, Vumlunmang Vualnam, Principal Secretary (Home), Kaling Tayeng, officials of AAI and others.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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