Bhubaneswar: In a major achievement of his Government, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the newly constructed Malkangiri Airport today facilitating air connectivity to the cut-off regions (Swabhman Anchal) of the State.
Malkangiri, the longest distance district from capital city Bhubaneswar, now features in the air route map. From Bhubaneswar to Malkangiri distance is 616 Kilometer. 5T and Nabin Odisha Chairman, Kartik Pandian was present on the occasion.
The Chief Minister expressed hope that this will lead to massive growth in communication, tourism, and trade in Malkangiri district and surrounding areas.
The State Government has spent around Rs 70 crore on the construction of the airport’s runway, which is 1,602 metre long and 30 metre wide. The airport has been built on 233 acres of land and it can handle small aircraft like the existing airport in Koraput.
A successful trial run of a VT-100 flight was conducted at the airport last Sunday. Following the trial run, the Chief Minister wrote on X, “Air connectivity to Malkangiri will usher in a new era of development, open up avenues of business & tourism, and further transform the lives of people in the region.”
In the first phase, nine-seat aircraft will operate from the airport while larger aircraft will provide services later, sources said.
The Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) authorities in Bhubaneswar have provided technical assistance to make the Malkangiri Airport operational.
During his visit to Malkangiri, the Chief Minister has approved the Govindapalli Integrated Irrigation Project in Mathili Block of the district with an outlay of Rs 4000 crore.
This is a storage irrigation project for which two dams will be constructed across Saptadhara and Garia rivers along with a connecting tunnel and irrigation system through underground pipelines.
It will help to irrigate an additional 92,815 acres of agricultural land in four blocks – Malkangiri, Matheli, Khairiput and Korkunda – and also provide drinking water to 1.50 lakh people.