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Mr Praful PatelHon’ble Union Minister for Civil AviationGovernment of IndiaNew Delhi May 13th 2008 Dear Mr Patel Sub: Renegotiation of BIAL concession agreement As you are aware, Bangalore City Connect Foundation, a multi-stakeholder platform of Bangalore’s citizens, filed a PIL in the Karnataka High Court, seeking the intervention of the court to keep the current HAL airport at Bangalore open, …

Bangalore’s new airport: help or hindrance?Posted by: Manjeet Kripalani on May 15http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/blog/eyeonasia/archives/2008/05/bangalores_new.htmlOn May 23, Bangalore’s new international airport will be open for business. It’ll be swish and modern, for sure. Built by a consortium that also built the Zurich airport, plus Siemens and India’s best infrastructure project company Larsen & Toubro. Cost $625 million. Flights from all over the world …

I came across the below enclosed press story dated September 2006. In 2006 itself, based a various information, including reports, authored by me, submitted by the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC), the Ministry of Civil Aviation, forced the BIAL consortium to expand the capacity of the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA). Please observe the following in the story. …

How govt hoodwinked the publicR K Misra The new airport would start functioning by “May-end’’ and BIAL was “not agreeable to keep the existing (HAL) airport open’’. So said civil aviation secretary Ashok Chawla. This was a government representative announcing the decision to close HAL airport after a short meeting with BIAL. It seems like Chawla was making this announcement …

You can get info on BIAL under RTI15 May 2008, 0425 hrs IST,TNN http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Bangalore/You_can_get_info_on_BIAL_under_RTI/articleshow/3041376.cms BANGALORE: In a landmark verdict passed by the Karnataka Information Commission (KIC), the consortium company of Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has been deemed as a ‘public authority’. Dwelling into the financial structure and funding patterns of BIAL, the commission found that the private-public consortia has …

http://www.thehindu.com/2008/05/15/stories/2008051550130100.htm Bangalore Bureau Set to create history: An Indian flight will be the first to take off from Bangalore International Airport on May 23. Bangalore: An Indian flight to Singapore will be the first aircraft to take off from the new Bangalore International Airport at Devanahalli on May 23. Sources said that the IC 957 Airbus A-320 will take off …

Radar-less BIAL faces dearth of ATCsTuesday May 13 2008 09:50 ISThttp://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE120080512232926&Title=Bangalore&rLink=0 Monica Jha / Express News Service BANGALORE: THE two radars at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) are not yet stabilised. BIA has a primary and a secondary radar which are not working properly and need some fine-tuning on the software. BIA is using a simulator to train its controllers. …

Govt decides, says just one airport in Bangalore ibnlive.com Published on Mon, May 12, 2008 at 21:11 in Nation section Bangalore: The city will have just one airport two weeks from Monday—the new one at Devanahalli, it has been decided. The old HAL airport will close down for all commercial flights as soon as the new BIAL airport is opened, …

New Bangalore airport to open soon12 May 2008, 2024 hrs IST, PTIThe Times of India NEW DELHI: Amid indications that no civilian flights will be allowed at Bangalore’s HAL airport, government on Monday said the new international airport will open by the end of this month and operator’s licence will be issued to it in the next 2-3 days. This …

The following news story on Sift/DNA, highlights the immediate need for the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA). The AERA bill has been languishing since early September 2007, when it was introduced in the Indian Parliament. Such disputes are increasing by the day, and excessive charges will spell the death knell of the Indian aviation industry, which is so dependent on …

To make Delhi double daily from July 1, 2008By Charmaine Fernz | Dubaihttp://www.travelbizmonitor.com Emirates is going all out in their expansion plans for India. Apart from announcing the launch of their six-weekly non-stop services to Kozhikode, starting July 1, 2008, the airline will also be ramping up their Delhi services. Talking to TravelBiz Monitor, Salem Obaidalla, Sr. Vice President – …

From TravelBizMonitor.comBy Krupa Vora| Mumbai After the recent announcement of starting flights to Kozhikode by June 15, 2008, Qatar Airways is now eyeing Bangalore as their destination in India. The airline is currently evaluating the feasibility of the route (Doha-Bangalore) and will apply for passenger operations once the new Bangalore International Airport is operational. “While the User Development Fee (UDF) …

Over the last one month, I observe a whole slew of procedures, policies, and dictats, emerging from New Delhi, that is improving and facilitating the smooth operations at major airports all over India. Industry chambers had proposed most of these measures almost 5 years ago, to the Government. While the Airports Authority of India (AAI) was the airport operator, these …

Visa on Arrival on the anvil for 18 countries MoT working closely with MHA to permit Visa on Arrival By Kanika Mehta | New Delhi The Ministry of Tourism (MoT) is working at obtaining Visa on Arrival for 18 countries and is currently in deliberations with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for the same. This is a first-time initiative …

Thanks to the repeated delays at the BIAL promoted Bengaluru International Airport (BIA), a crisis is brewing at HAL airport in Bangalore; a crisis which can turn ugly at any moment. Expecting the new airport to open on March 30th, most operators at HAL airport lost staff to the new operators at BIA. Ground and ramp handling (ladders/aero-bridges, baggage loading, …

The last few days have brought good news for the BIAL consortium, the promoters of the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA). Two weeks ago, the new Greenfield airports policy, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers, Government of India, specifically protects the monopoly of both BIA and Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA). No new airport will be allowed to be …

Editorial: Flights of ad hocismBusiness Standard / New Delhi May 05, 2008 The ad hoc nature of government policy towards airports is no longer a joke, since it has played havoc with both passengers who have to traverse large distances, and those who have invested in new airports on the basis of contractual commitments. A similar ad hoc attitude seems …

According to the Financial Times, “The skies over Mumbai are set to face a congestion crisis early next decade with the Indian financial capital’s existing international airport likely to be overloaded with passengers even after a $2.3bn expansion is completed, according to the city airport’s top executive.” “GV Sanjay Reddy, managing director of Mumbai International Airport, told the Financial Times, …

Earlier this week, under directions of High Court of Karnataka, the Ministry of Civil Aviation held discussions with Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) consortium about the high User Development Fee (UDF), and on keeping the existing HAL airport open in parallel with the new Bengaluru International Airport (BIA). On sites like Citizen Matters and Praja, many Bangaloreans are voicing concern …

This is the first story I have been able to publish on two major interests of mine, Aviation and Philanthropy. Please read the full story on the Rotary International website. If you would like to know more about Rotary in Bangalore, visit Rotary Club of Bangalore website.