Ahead of the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Surat on February 25, residents of the state's second largest city have started raising the issue of international air connectivity, and reminding the PM of his promise to put Surat on the international airmap.
Ahead of the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Surat on February 25, residents of the state's second largest city have started raising the issue of international air connectivity, and reminding the PM of his promise to put Surat on the international airmap.
Surat, the global hub of diamond cutting & polishing, and largest producer of synthetic textiles in the country, has been demanding proper air connectivity for past several years. Though the city now has flights to and from Delhi, Mumbai, Goa, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and other cities, international air connectivity remains a dream.
"Narendra Modi had promised to put Surat on the international airmap when he was the state's chief minister. He had repeated the promise during the recent election campaign. Since he is coming to Surat in a few days, we have started a campaign to remind him of his promise," Sanjay Ezhava, who heads the group Surat Airport Action Committee (SAAC), said.
The PM is scheduled to visit Surat on February 25 where he will flag off the Night Marathon.
Ezhava said that they have written to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) seeking an appointment with him to make a representation to him in person during his visit.
"We are also meeting the local MLAs and MPs, besides mobilising support of Surat residents for the important cause. We are confident that Surat's demand for international flight connectivity will be fulfilled," he added.
On Monday, a large number of Surat residents took to Twitter and wrote to the PM asking him to declare international flight connectivity for the city.
Last week, SAAC wrote to Chief Minister Vijay Rupani appealing to him to submit a formal proposal for an international airport in Surat to the central government.
SAAC said that Surat district administration has acquired 324 hectare land for the airport's expansion, but it has not been allotted to Airports Authority of India (AAI). It also demanded that the runway length be extended from the existing 2,905 metre to 4,000 metre so that it can handle larger aircraft.
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