Mall, restaurants to come up atop new Zuari bridge: Gadkari

Navhind Times | 1 year ago | 02-11-2021 | 01:11 am

NT NETWORKPanajiGoa’s new Zuari Bridge will be state-of-the art and as good as the famous Eiffel Tower of Paris, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has said.Gadkari, addressing local industrialists on Monday, said that the state government has already sanctioned around 50-60 hectares for a mall, restaurants, handicraft centre, and various facilities on the upcoming new Zuari bridge.“All the proposed facilities will be related to culture and draw tourists,” said Gadkari, talking to industrialists of the PM Gati Shakti project, that aims to complete all ongoing road, highway and infrastructure projects in the country by 2024-25.“Tourism is basic strength of Goa and because of infrastructure projects being completed, the state tourism will multiply,” said Gadkari.The Union minister said that he envisages adventure water sports, boating, amphibian sea plane for the state and also fresh focus on shipping.“Shipping is very important for Goa. The Centre had cleared increasing the draft of Goa port to 18 metre but an NGT order stopped the work. Forest clearance and opposition by activists is a problem in the state,” observed Gadkari.His suggestions for the state includes a future drone manufacturing unit, an heli-port for air ambulances to land, focus on food processing and fisheries.“Under the central Sagarmala project, the state has been sanctioned an electronic cluster,” disclosed the Union minister. He added that because the state is already a pharmaceutical hub, it must also look at setting up a medical device cluster.“There is a suggestion for metro in Goa but why not take advantage of water transport as tourists can arrive at Dabolim and go to various hotels by waterways,” said Gadkari.Under the Gati Shakti project, each state has targets to complete ongoing road and highway projects, he said. Gadkari also answered questions raised by Goan industry owners on problems faced by them.To a question on when the new Zuari bridge will be finally complete, he said that the government would try its best to open at least one lane of the bridge before the code of conduct for the assembly elections.The problem of stoppage of feeder vessel at MPT would also be solved, promised Gadkari. Post his address, local industrialists expressed satisfaction with the interaction.Ralph De Sousa, president, GCCI said that the minister has committed on timelines to complete the new bridge which is very encouraging.”The interaction was attended by the Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho, a battery of senior government officials and heads of industry bodies.Launched on October 13 2021, the Gati Shakti project aims at reducing logistic costs, creating jobs and improving marketing of goods through road projects and national highways among others.

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Times of India | 4 hours ago | 29-11-2022 | 02:40 am

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New Delhi: The new international airport at Mopa is likely to become operational in the first week of January, possibly on the fifth, sources said.CM Pramod Sawant had said at the Times Now Summit last week that PM Narendra Modi could tentatively inaugurate it on December 11.“It takes about a month to make an airport operational after the inauguration,” sources said. “Airlines need to mark on tickets to and from Goa which airport the flight will operate from, Dabolim or Mopa. Also, CISF has to move in and take over security of the facility, which takes around 15 days. People who have bought tickets to and from Goa for the coming months will be informed by airlines via SMS in case their flights will now land at or depart from Mopa.” GMR Goa International Airport Limited (GGIAL), which will operate the airport, is looking at January 5 as Mopa’s opening date. On October 26, the directorate general of civil aviation had issued the aerodrome licence to the Airport after a series of checkposts, thus, the airport was certified to be safe for handling flights. Airlines like IndiGo have indicated that they will operate from both the existing Dabolim airport and the new one at Mopa.The Mopa airport is keenly awaited as Dabolim, a Naval airport, has limited slots for scheduled commercial flights. For years, this has meant flights during limited hours of the day — and hence high fares in peak travel season — for passengers. Being a 100% civilian airport, Mopa will allow more flights to Goa — at least doubling from current numbers.The airports economic regulatory authority (AERA) this August issued an ad hoc tariff order for the GMR-developed Mopa airport. For the first few years, second airports that will soon start opening in Indian cities/regions could be relatively more expensive than the single ones operating there so far. The reason: A majority of them will need to compete for traffic with the existing ones. When Bengaluru and Hyderabad got new airports in 2009 and 2008, respectively, the exiting ones — HAL and Begumpet — were closed for commercial flights. AERA’s ad hoc aeronautical charges tariff order for Mopa includes a user development fee (UDF) of Rs 450 and Rs 1,100 per departing domestic and international passenger respectively. The GMR group that has developed Mopa had proposed a UDF of Rs 980 and Rs 1,500. The authority felt “the proposal of the airport operator is on the higher side and needs to be moderated”. The authority has decided to allow GGIAL to charge the ad hoc tariff till March 31, 2023, or if the regular tariff order is issued before that.

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Times of India | 4 hours ago | 29-11-2022 | 02:40 am

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Times of India | 4 hours ago | 29-11-2022 | 02:40 am

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Times of India | 1 day ago | 28-11-2022 | 04:17 am

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