Bhiwadi gets site clearance for 2nd Delhi-NCR airport, what happened to Jewar?

New Delhi - Will Rajasthan pip Uttar Pradesh in the race for a second airport in the Delhi-NCR region? At least as far as clearances go, Bhiwadi seems to be racing ahead and this may not please junior aviation minister Mahesh Sharma, who has been a very vocal supporter of the airport coming up at Jewar. [caption id=“attachment_2530358” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] In reply to a written question in the Rajya Sabha, Sharma said the government has granted “site clearance” to DMIDC (project proponent) for setting up of a greenfield airport near Bhiwadi, in Alwar district, Rajasthan, on 18 November. And that a view on setting up a greenfield Airport at Jewar will be taken after receiving a complete updated proposal from the government of Uttar Pradesh. A second airport in the Delhi-NCR region has been a subject widely discussed for several years with successive governments in Uttar Pradesh taking differing positions on Jewar. The site was originally proposed by the then CM, Mayawati. Last year, after the NDA came to power, Sharma had lead the charge by repeatedly voicing his support for Jewar, Earlier this year, he had also chaired a meeting which apparently cleared the way for the ministry to do necessary inspections etc before taking up the cause of Jewar. But from the answer in the Upper House, it is clear that at least for now, Jewar is behind Bhiwadi in this race. As per the existing norms, any second airport within 150 km radius of an existing one needs clearance from the government. The Bhiwadi project too will require waiver of this clause since it will fall within the 150 km radius of the existing Delhi International Airport operated by GMR Infrastructure-led consortium. GMR may, as way of compensation, be asked to match the lowest bid for the proposed airport. The airport in Bhiwadi, if it does come up, which will be developed by the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC). DIAL is slated to achieve 100 million passenger capacity between 2021 and 2023, thereby reaching saturation point. In his reply, minister Sharma further said that the government has until now granted ‘in-principle’ approval to 13 greenfield airport projects: Mopa in Goa, Navi Mumbai, Sindhudurg and Shirdi in Maharashtra, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Hassan and Shimoga in Karnataka, Kannur in Kerala, Dabra in Gwalior, Pakyong in Sikkim, Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh and Karaikal in Puducherry.