CENTRE’S DECISION WILL BOOST EASTERN UP’S GROWTH: YOGI

LUCKNOW : Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said the union cabinet’s decision to grant international airport status to Kushinagar airport would boost tourism, create new job opportunities and lead to the development of eastern UP. Yogi expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He said the PM had given two international airports to UP. While Noida international airport, coming up at Jewar, would provide better connectivity to the National Capital Region and western UP, the Kushinagar international airport would improve connectivity with east U P, the chief minister said. He also said the state had the distinction of having a number of places associated with Mahatma Buddha. Besides Kushinagar, these places include Sarnath, Shravasti, Kapilvastu, Kaushambi and Sankisa, he said. Yogi said Buddha’s birth place Lumbini and Bodhgaya, where he performed ‘tapasya’, were close to the Kushinagar international airport. The international airport would be helpful to the followers of Buddhism and other tourists from Japan, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and other countries, Yogi Adityanath said. Yogi said the state government had begun construction after acquiring 500-acre land for the international airport. A sum of Rs 190 crore had been released and 95% work on the project was completed by RITES, he added. Works carried out at the airport included a 3200x45 metre runway and air traffic control (ATC) tower, he said. The chief minister said the state government had decided to transfer the airport to Airports Authority of India for its further development and a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed for the purpose on March 5, 2019. He said the transfer process was completed on October 4, 2019.