MYSORE: In view of the Mysore's potential to generate good air passenger traffic, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has proposed to develop a full-fledged airport at Mandakalli on the outskirts of the city, large enough to accommodate Boeing 737 aircraft.

Senior officials from the regional office of the authority in Bangalore revealed this to presspersons here on Wednesday. They were here for an inspection ahead of launching the work on the airport.

Though the State Government and the AAI had signed a memorandum of understanding to upgrade the airport to operate 50 to 55-seater ATR aircraft, AAI Chairman K. Ramalingam has urged the Government to take steps to facilitate construction of a full-fledged airport.

AAI's Deputy General Manager (Civil) M.N.N. Rao said Mysore and Hubli figured in the master plan for development of airports across the country. "Mysore has a good potential to generate air traffic. With a number of low-cost airlines operating in the country, air travel is no longer a luxury. It has become a common man's mode of transport also," Mr. Rao added.

The Mandakalli airport is spread across 280 acres of land. The Government and the AAI have signed an agreement to upgrade the airport by acquiring 175 acres more.

The AAI, which is awaiting 175 acres of land, has asked Deputy Commissioner Selva Kumar to acquire an additional 94 acres for a"full-fledged" airport.

Meanwhile, Mysore MP C.H. Vijayshankar said that a government notification to acquire 94 acres of additional land around the Mandakalli airport had been issued.

But the alignment of Mysore-Nanjangud Road, which was also part of the Bangalore-Nilgiri National Highway, was posing a hurdle. "We have to either shift the highway or build an underpass," he said. Mr. Vijayshankar said that he would take a delegation of officials, including Principal Secretary to the Infrastructure Department Vinay Kumar, to New Delhi in the next 15 days for a discussion with AAI officials on the matter.

Meanwhile, the stay order on acquisition of 20 acres of the 175 acres of land for the airport project has held up the work with AAI officials remaining firm on starting it only after the required land is handed over to them.

Of the 175 acres of land required, 155 acres had been acquired. The owner of 20 acres had moved the court seeking additional compensation. `We are hopeful that the issue will be resolved in the next 15 days," Mr. Selva Kumar said.

But Mr. Vijayshankar said that he would request AAI officials in New Delhi to begin work soon. "We will try to convince the officials to start work with the land acquired now with a promise to hand over the rest as soon as possible," he added.

Mr. Vijayshankar ruled out the possibility of the authorities identifying an alternative site for the airport. "The AAI authorities are convinced that a full-fledged airport could come up on the existing site," he added.

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