The Hindu Business Line : Spurt in import activity at Kolkata airport; 30% growth seen

Cargo imported at the Kolkata airport is expected to grow by more than 30 per cent this financial year, the highest growth rate among all major airports in the country.

While the spurt in industrial activity and commissioning of new projects in the State has led to the import of machinery and equipment, cargo exported from the airport is believed to have remained more or less stagnant this year, Mr R.N. Srivatsan, Deputy General Manager (cargo division) at the airport, said.

“Last year cargo imported at the Netaji Shubhash Chandra Bose International airport had grown by nearly 35 per cent, while that in Chennai, Bombay and Delhi had registered a growth of 20-25 per cent,” Mr Srivatsan told Business Line.

According to sources, the Kolkata airport received approximately 3,850 cargo flights (both exclusive cargo flights and passenger flights carrying cargo) since April 2007. The number of packages imported during this period was around 259,190, while the estimated weight of cargo imported was 12,871.5 tonnes.

The airport authority would like to open a new storehouse to handle imported cargo at the international cargo building by April, said Mr Srivatsan.

“We have been experiencing this phenomenal growth curve in imports over the last two years, driven particularly by infrastructural development and new project works undertaken by telecom companies like BSNL and others in this part of the country,” he said.

The industrial belt of Haldia also receives a big chunk of this imported cargo, Mr Srivatsan added.

Cargo imported

The machinery and electrical components for these projects are mostly imported from countries like Sweden, Finland, Germany, Korea, etc. Powerful antennas, heavy cables and mobile phones figure among the equipment imported at the airport.

Most of the outgoing cargo from the Kolkata airport is transported to the North Eastern States of Assam and Meghalaya, and to Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa, Mr Srivatsan said.

“Airports at these places are not equipped for the landing of wide-body aircraft like the Boeing 747. Hence, they depend on Kolkata airport for the movement of big volumes of cargo,” he said.

Unaccompanied baggage figures the least among the items imported at Kolkata airport as compared to Chennai, he said.

Stagnating export

In contrast to imports, cargo exported from Kolkata airport is not picking up, the growth figure for other airports however being consistently at 12-13 per cent, Mr Srivatsan said.

The estimated weight of cargo exported since April 2007 has been relatively smaller, around 2,440 tonnes.

The export figures are not expected to go up substantially in the coming years because not many of the new projects, barring the small car factory of Tata Motors, are going be export-oriented, industry sources said.

More Stories on : Air Cargo | West Bengal

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Spurt in import activity at Kolkata airport; 30% growth seen

AI faces pressure from Italian seat suppliers as dollar weakens

Hyderabad airport: User development fee should ‘not exceed Rs 1,000’

DP World seeks Rlys nod, plans to invest $60 m in 2 Gujarat ICDs

Kolkata port-Birganj ICD box freight rates raised

Railways mulls high-speed rail corridor in South