Jaipur airport: Privatization to boost facilities, but air travel to get costlier
The Adani Enterprises will start managing the Jaipur airport along with four other airports including Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Thiruvananthapuram, and Mangalore from March.
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Representative Image. Image Credit: Post Staff
Jaipur: The privatization will lead to many changes at Jaipur International Airport with regard to passenger facilities, traveling charges and infrastructure, according to experts.
The Adani Enterprises will start managing the Jaipur airport along with four other airports including Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Thiruvananthapuram, and Mangalore from March.
The commuters will benefit from the increased facilities after the privatization. On the other hand, it could also lead to additional financial burden on passengers and vendors at the airport.
Currently, five major airports of the country including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Cochin are operating under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
According to the reports, the facilities and passenger’s conveniences were beefed up after the privatization at these airports but the charges for the entry, baggage, and parking were also increased.
The hunger strike by airport employee’s union which was going on for the last two days against the privatization of the airport was called off on Tuesday. The protesters had a word with the officials of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and decided to call off the strike.
According to the secretary of employees’ union Ravindra Singh, they are concerned about their jobs after the privatization. After the IAF strike on Tuesday, the employees decided to call off the strike. The union is likely to approach a court and file a petition against it.
Whether the employees will be shifted to other AAI operated airports or they will continue to work under the management of the private firm is not clear yet, said officials.
Several changes will likely be introduced including more check-in, security and baggage counters, better washrooms, drinking water and more options for fun, shopping and entertainment.
The upgradations can also lead to an increase in parking and entry fee and flight ticket prices. The cost of food and other items will likely go up threefold.
