Parliament Question: Aviation infrastructure expansion, and emerging airport ecosystems in Maharashtra

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 1787 TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 9th March 2026 AVIATION INFRASTRUCTURE EXPANSION, AND EMERGING AIRPORT ECOSYSTEMS IN MAHARASHTRA 1787. SHRI UJJWAL DEORAO NIKAM Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION be pleased to state:- (a) the details of major airport and terminal infrastructure commissioned during the last two years, including their designed passenger handling capacity and expected regional economic impact especially in the State of Maharashtra; (b) whether any integrated multi-modal connectivity planning has been undertaken to link newly developed airports with highways, railways and logistics hubs in the Khandesh, Marathwada and Vidarbha regions of the State of Maharashtra; (c) if so, the details thereof; and (d) whether Government has undertaken any assessment of employment generation and local ecosystem development around newly operational airports and if so, the details thereof? ANSWER Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION (Shri Murlidhar Mohol) (a): During last two years, Greenfield Airport in Navi Mumbai has been inaugurated and commissioned with Passenger Handling Capacity of 20 Million Passenger Per Annum (MPPA). Further, Upgradation/ Modernisation of airports is a continuous process and during last two years, airport projects have been undertaken by AAI and Private airport operators/developers at several airports across the country including at Delhi, Guwahati, Lucknow, Kolhapur, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Dehradun, Rajkot, Surat, Tuticorin, Itanagar and Prayagraj etc. With the upgradation/modernisation/expansion, passenger handling capacity of these airports has become more than 150 MPPA. (b) & (c):In the state of Maharashtra, three new Greenfield airports namely, Shirdi, Sindhudurg and Navi Mumbai have been operationalised and these are well connected with road and rail network. (d):Airports have emerged as a nucleus of economic activities and have multiplier effect on the economy of the State. The linkage between the Civil Aviation Sector and Economic Growth is well recognised. International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) study shows that the air connectivity has an economic multiplier of 3.25 and employment multiplier of 6.1.******