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Our Bureau

Bangalore , Jan. 18

THE New Year seems to promise some long-pending take-offs in Karnataka's aviation scene.

For one, the State Government plans to ink on January 20 the two crucial agreements that will give wings to the Bangalore International Airport Project (BIAP) proposed at Devanahalli.

For the other, the domestic airports at five other locations will also get their share of attention and development if action keeps pace with the intents of the Centre and the State Government.

On Thursday, the Karnataka Government and Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) are slated to sign the land lease and State support agreements for the Rs 1,334-crore project, Government and airport company sources confirmed. The pacts will enable BIAL to take possession of 4,050 acres of land on 30-year lease and also get a soft loan of Rs 350 crore from the State Government. The pacts are the last hurdles that the project needs to cross before BIAL can sew up its debt arrangement with the ICICI Bank-led consortium.

A flurry of activity is also looming on the domestic airports front, which, the State Government believes, will tap its potential in tourism through feeder and private airlines and promote industrial development beyond an overcrowded Bangalore. While the Mangalore and Mysore airports are to be upgraded at the cost of the Airports Authority of India, Gulbarga and Hassan are to get on to the aviation map with their own new airports. The Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr Praful Patel, is scheduled to launch the upgradation work at the Mangalore airport, where the AAI has approved the construction of a second runway. The runway is to be quickly upgraded to international standards. The State will take care of land, water, power and security needs of these projects.

Officials said AAI and Karnataka would also sign an MoU for the Rs 55-crore modernisation of the airport at heritage city Mysore. The MoU also covers the two new airports for which Karnataka will contribute Rs 10 crore each. The projects are to be completed over a three-year period, according to the Industry and Infrastructure Minister, Mr P.G.R. Sindhia.

At Hubli where a functional airport exists, Karnataka has created night landing facilities at an investment of Rs 2 crore.

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