The Ministry of Environment today cleared the Navi Mumbai Airport project, paving way for a second airport to ease air traffic in Mumbai. The Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) had been at loggerheads over the alleged delay in environment clearance for the airport. “Today, formally the environmental clearance has been given to the Navi Mumbai Airport project. The provisions of building the airport will start today,” said Jairam Ramesh, Environment Minister, Government of India.

The Ministry of Environment had been of the view that construction of an airport at the proposed site in Navi Mumbai, some 20 kms from the main city, will lead to destruction of a mangrove forest and diversion of two small rivers. It had also objected to the project on ground that it would lead to blasting of an 80-metre-high hill which falls in the path of the runway. 

Planned as a Public-Private Partnership, the project is proposed with 74 per cent equity with the private players and remaining 26 per cent divided equally between the state-run Airports Authority of India (AAI) and City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) of Maharashtra. 

The project, proposed at a distance of 35 kms from the existing Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) in Mumbai, is expected to take care of the load due to future growth in population, business and commercial activity of the region. Around 1,140 hectares of land has already been earmarked for it. 

It is expected to handle ten million passengers in its first operational year, doubling to 20 million in eight years. The aim is that the airport will have a handling capacity of 40 million passengers by 2030.