Parliament Question: Implementation and monitoring of approved Greenfield airports

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. : 1791 TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 9th March 2026 IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING OF APPROVED GREENFIELD AIRPORTS 1791. SHRI SUBHASISH KHUNTIA Will the Minister of CIVIL AVIATION be pleased to state:- (a) whether Greenfield airports have been granted ‘In-Principle’ approval since 2018 under the Greenfield airports (GFA) Policy, 2008 and if so, the number thereof; (b) out of these, the number that have commenced construction and become operational, along with the average time taken between approval and commencement of construction; (c) whether Government has any post-approval monitoring mechanism; (d) if so, the progress reviewed in respect of the proposed Puri Greenfield airport after grant of ‘In-Principle’ approval in May, 2025; and (e) whether any time-bound milestones are prescribed to prevent delay? ANSWER Minister of State in the Ministry of CIVIL AVIATION (Shri Murlidhar Mohol) (a) to (b): Government of India (GoI) has formulated a Greenfield Airports (GFA) Policy, 2008 for development of new Greenfield airports in the country. Under this Policy, In- Principle approval has been granted for development of Greenfield airports at 5 sites viz. Noida (Jewar), Uttar Pradesh in 2018, Itanagar (Hollongi) in Arunachal Pradesh in 2019, Parandur, Tamil Nadu in 2025, Puri, Odisha in 2025 and Kota, Rajasthan in 2025. Out of these,1 airport, viz. Itanagar (Hollongi) has become operational, after completion of construction. As per GFA Policy, the responsibility for implementation of the Greenfield airport project lies with the Project Proponent. Also, the timeline for completion of the airport projects depends upon several factors such as land acquisition, availability of mandatory clearances including environmental clearances, financial closure etc. (c) to (e): Ministry of Civil Aviation periodically reviews the progress of airport projects by holding meetings with the State Governments, airport developers and other stakeholders to ensure expeditious completion of these projects. Further, as per one of the conditions of grantof 'In-Principle' approval to Puri Greenfield airport project, the approval development are required to be initiated within five years from grant of approval. AAI and other airport operators also internally review their projects. ******