Prospects versus politics over Thiruvananthapuram airport privatisation

Enhancing connectivity, better amenities and improving the logistics infrastructure are likely to be the major prospects of privatisation of the 85-year-old Thiruvananthapuram International Airport.

The ruling CPM in Kerala and opposition party Congress are strongly against the decision of the BJP government at the centre to hand over the airport to the Adani group. Their major concern is over the airport ownership, especially since the 630-acre airport land was given by the state, even as the fact was that the airport's ownership would continue to be with the centre and only operations, management and development are being leased out for 50 years.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan sent a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging that the decision to hand over the airport to a private party should be reviewed and the state's demand for handing over airport to an SPV with state government equity participation should be reconsidered.

He also said that the state government would not cooperate with the implementation of the decision to handover airport to a private party. Congress and CPM decided at an all-party meeting to pass a resolution in the state Assembly to raise the demand at the Centre.

Apart from leaders of the trade and commerce sector, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor also welcomed the privatisation move. He said on the social media that a private entity running the operations competitively was the only way the airport could flourish.

The airport, situated almost in the heart of the city, lacked sufficient domestic and international connectivity. At present direct international connectivity was available mainly to Gulf countries, Singapore, Maldives and Colombo, while there had been long-pending demand for direct connectivity to European and American countries, especially to cater to the frequent travel needs of the IT companies at Technopark, which is hardly ten kilometres from the airport.

A private operator could offer better deals to attract international operators than AAI, which has been running the airport. With a 3,400 metre runway, the airport could handle almost all type of aircraft.

Another major prospect is that the upcoming Vizhinjam international seaport, around 15 kilometres away from the airport, is also being developed by Adani group and there is a high potential for enhancing the logistic infrastructure of the region through proper coordination between the airport and seaport.

The airport that was set up under the initiative of the erstwhile Travancore royal family had even won award for best airport of AAI several times over these years. However, a private player would try to make the airport more attractive to woo passengers by enhancing the amenities.

While the Congress and the CPM are now making a hue and cry over airport privatisation, the AAI's demand for at least 18 acres to develop an integrated terminal building was remaining pending for at least a decade.