PM Narendra Modi lays the foundation stone of Shivamogga Airport in Karnataka Today

The Honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi arrived in Kolkata for the inauguration of the Shivamogga Airport located at Sogane. The inauguration ceremony was held today February 27, 2023. This domestic airport also called Kuvempu Airport has been built on 663 acres of land and the government deployed an investment amount of Rs 449.22 crores for this project. 

Along with this, the Indian Prime Minister attended the inaugural opening of the airport and also took several other development projects in the poll-bound state. Days ahead of his visit to Shivamogga, PM Modi said that the facility will boost commerce, and connectivity and enhance tourism in the region.

While addressing the ceremonial function, PM Modi is delighted over the event and expressed that the Shivamogga airport is a grand & beautiful airport which was built in two phases. At this airport, there is an ideal combination of Karnataka's tradition and technology located at the Sogane village, approximately 8.8 km from Shivamogga and 8.2 km from Bhadravathi. According to PM Modi, it is not just an airport but it is a tour towards a new journey of the dreams of the youth residing in this area.

Glad to have inaugurated the airport in Shivamogga. pic.twitter.com/I3cLj2y4n2

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 27, 2023

Shivamogga Airport Construction Project

Shivamogga Airport is being built on 663 acres of land involving an investment of Rs 449.22 crores. The building was laid in June 2020 by former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa. The Passenger Terminal Building of the airport can handle around 300 passengers per hour.

As per the official statement, the airport is working towards the improvement of its connectivity and accessibility to the Shivamogga region and other neighbouring areas in the Malnad region.

This is the 9th domestic airport established in Karnataka. At present, the state's domestic airports are located in Bengaluru, Mysuru, Ballari, Bidar, Hubballi, Kalaburagi, Belagavi as well as Mangaluru. Both Bengaluru and Mangaluru airports are the two international airports located across the state.

The airport has the longest runway of about 3,200 metres which is the longest after Kempe Gowda International Airport, Bengaluru. It has been designed to operate Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 type Aircraft and holds the efficient capacity of handling nearly 200 peak-hour passengers.

Earlier, the former CM Yediyurappa stated that the Shivamogga Airport will have the second longest runway in Karnataka after Bengaluru. He further added that it will fulfil the demands of the people of the Malnad region with the aim of building strong connectivity, boosting tourism and accelerating growth across Central Karnataka.

Other Development Projects

PM Modi also lay the foundation stones of two railway projects in Shivamogga which are the Shivamogga-Shikaripura-Ranebennur new line and the Koteganguru railway coaching depot. The new line will be developed at a cost of Rs 990 crores to be borne by the government and will provide super connectivity between the Malnad region and Bengaluru-Mumbai mainline. The coaching depot in Shivamogga city will be designed at a significant cost of over Rs 100 crores and the objective is to help start new trains from Shivamogga and decongest maintenance facilities in Bengaluru and Mysuru.

After this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting is lined up with Shivamogga and the Belagavi districts as he will be visiting the places in order to inaugurate water supply projects worth more than Rs 2,500 crores. This initiative comes under the ‘Jal Jeevan Mission’ which will benefit more than 13 lakh people in these two districts, as stated in an official press release.

Also Read: India at 42 Rank among 55 Global Economies as per International Intellectual Property Index 2023