Ayodhya Airport: Facts, connectivity, impact

Prime minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Ayodhya Airport on December 30, 2023. The new airport, formally named the Maharishi Valmiki International Airport-Ayodhyadham, will help the old city handle the expected spike in the number of travelers to the birthplace of Lord Ram.

 

Source: Instagram

 

Ayodhya airport opening date

Source: Instagram

While the Ayodhya Airport to be inaugurated on December 30, operations on the airport will start from January 6, 2024. The airport is already connected with cities like Delhi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai.

Ayodhya Airport estimated cost

Officially known as the Maharishi Valmiki International Airport Ayodhya Dham, the upcoming project would be the fifth airport in UP, India’s most populous state. Being built under the Centre’s Regional Connectivity Scheme, Phase-1 of the the Ayodhya airport has been developed at an estimated cost of Rs 1,450 crore. With the Ayodhya Airport, UP will become the only state in India to have five international airports. UP already has two functional international airports – Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport (Lucknow) and Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport (Varanasi). Work is underway to build Kushinagar International Airport (Gorakhpur) and Noida International Airport (Jewar).

 

(Source: PIB)

 

Ayodhya Airport: Key facts

Formal name	Maryada Purshottam Sriram Airport
Location	Ayodhya
Phases	3
Area	821 acre
Developing agency	Airports Authority of India
Other names	Ayodhya Airport, Faizabad Airport
Estimated completion date	December 2023 for Phase -1
Being built under	Central government’s Regional Connectivity Scheme

Also read: Ayodhya: Temple town turns into a property hotspot

 

Ayodhya airport: Location and address

Located 8 km from the Ram Temple, the airport is coming up along the Gorakhpur-Lucknow National Highway. It is located 10 km from the city centre.  The IATA code of the Airport is AYJ while its pin code is 224123

 

Ayodhya airport: Phases

To be executed in three phases, the Ayodhya Airport will be spread across 821 acre. The construction work is being carried out by the Airport Authority of India (AAI).

In the first phase, a 65,000-square-feet terminal is under-construction with a capacity to handle two-three flights per hour. A 2200-metre runway is coming up to facilitate landing of large aircraft like Boeing 737, Airbus 319, and Airbus 320 in addition to smaller aircraft.

In the second phase, the airport’s terminal building will be spread over 5 lakh squre foot. Its runway will be increased from 2,200 metres to 3700 metres. This will help all international flights land directly in Ayodhya, including Boeing 787 and Boeing 777.

 

Ayodhya Airport: Developer

Bangalore-based Vishal Infrastructure bagged the bid for the runway construction. Incorporated in 1990, the company has executed large-scale infrastructure projects like airports, hospitals, housing, highways, bridges, etc. Among the airport projects it has built is the New Madurai Airport Terminal Building in Tamil Nadu’s Madurai.

 

Ayodhya Airport: Architecture and design

Flaunting a design that would give visitors a glimpse of the Ramayana era, the Ayodhya Airport would resemble the Ram temple in elevation.

“The design of the airport will reflect the idea and spirit of Ram Mandir, invoking a sense of spirituality and creating a sense of place for all passengers arriving and departing from the airport… The glass façade of the terminal will be designed to recreate a sense of being in the very palace of Ayodhya,” AAI said in a press statement.

The design is inspired by the Nagara style of architecture. The columns over here are based on the 7 Kandas of the Ramayana. An effort has been made to capture the entire essence of Ramayana and the entire Ayodhya,”Harsh Varshney, one of the architects of the airport, told ANI. “The main spirit behind the airport is to bring back the magic and to regain the lost touch of Ayodhya, which has been an eternal city in itself,” he adds.

 

(Source: PIB)

 

Ayodhya Airport: Capacity

The new terminal building with total area of 6,000 sqm is being designed to serve 300 passengers during peak hours with an annual handling capacity of 6 lakh passengers, the statement added. The first terminal is expected be operational by 2023-end while the remaining three terminals will be completed by 2025.

 

Ayodhya Airport: Amenities and facilities

The following facilities will be available in the airport premises:

• Baggage handling system
• Passenger boarding bridges
• Flight information and displays
• Sewage treatment facility
• Fire-fighting system
• Security equipment
• Restaurant
• Educational Facilities
• Post and Telegraph
• Power supply
• Medical Facilities
• Drinking Water Facility

 

Ayodhya airport: Impact on employment, industry

The detailed project report of the Ayodhya Airport pegs astronomical impact of the air connectivity on the job market and economic activity by way of providing better infrastructure facilities for air passengers and promotion of tourism, trade, commerce, etc.

“The project will boast economic growth benefitting the whole region through the generation of both direct and indirect economic value. Airport operations will have a considerable economic and social impact in surrounding regions. These benefits extend far beyond the direct effect of an airport’s operation on its community development to the wider benefits that air service accessibility brings to business interests and to PFR for the Development of Maryada Purshottam Shriram Airport at Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh consumers. The construction and operation of airport will generate direct employment opportunity, indirectly contributed jobs through supply chain, enhance induced impact through tourism. Thus, the project will prove beneficial to the area,” it says.

According to the DPR, a large number of industries and infrastructure development in the southern region of the state will avail of the facilities of the Ayodhya Airport. Besides, passenger traffic growth, a large mix of industries in this region offers a great potential of the enhanced cargo activities. The region offers unlimited scope for the growth of tourism, trade and commercial activities.

 

Ayodhya Airport: Impact on real estate

The prospects of an international airport in a mid-size city in Uttar Pradesh have significantly fueled demand for real estate— which largely includes agricultural and non-agricultural land in and around Ayodhya, erstwhile named Faizabad. This activity has further intensified with the slated grand opening of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, expected to attract millions of travelers and pilgrims in the coming years. Little wonder then that rates of land and existing property in Ayodhya have skyrocketed between 2014 and 2023, with the majority of upwards growth manifesting itself in the past two years.

“In anticipation of global attraction due to the opening of the Ram Temple and the newly bestowed international air connectivity, land rates across Ayodhya have increased 5 to 10 times in the past decade,” says Ratnesh Shukla, a property broker whose business has boomed after the announcement of the airport in Ayodhya.

In the past five years, per square foot rate of property in Ayodhya has increased to nearly Rs 1,500 square foot as compared to Rs 500 square foot seen in 2018, says Shukla.

The impact of the twin projects is evident from the fact that real estate biggie The House of Abhinandan Lodha has reportedly invested close to Rs 300 crore to buy a 25-acre land parcel in Ayodhya. The company plans to launch a plotted development project in January 2024, HT Digital reported cited highly placed company officials.

 

Latest news

UP Budget allocated Rs 150 cr for Ayodhya Airport expansion

February 6, 2024: In a move that would further boost the prospects of real estate in Ayodhya, the Uttar Pradesh government in its Budget for Financial year 2024-25 allocated Rs 150 crore for the expansion of the Maharishi Valmiki International Airport in the city.

Ayodhya Airport now connected with Bangalore, Kolkata

January 18, 2024: Union minister of civil aviation Jyotiraditya M Scindia on january 17 marked a historic moment by flagging off the inaugural flight connecting Ayodhya to Bangalore and Kolkata. Operated by Air India Express, the service will be available three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, effective immediately. Scindia said that Ayodhya had been connected to Ahmedabad, Delhi and now to Kolkata and Bangalore as well. “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, we have ensured that within 17 days of the launch of an international airport the Maharshi Valmiki International Airport, Ayodhya is connected to all four corners of the country,” the minister said, adding that the connectivity would help devotees from all across the nation to visit the newly built grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

 

Civil aviation minister flags off flight from Ayodhya to Ahmedabad

January 11, 2024: Union minister of civil aviation and steel Jyotiraditya M Scindia today inaugurated a direct flight between Ayodhya and Ahmedabad from New Delhi. With this inauguration, Ayodhya gets three direct flights a week from Ahmedabad.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, UP minister of tourism and culture Jayveer Singh, Member of Parliament from Ayodhya Lallu Singh and Member of Parliament from Ahmedabad Kirit Premjibhai Solanki were also present during the occasion.

 

IndiGo starts flight operations between Ahmedabad and Ayodhya

January 11, 2024: IndiGo has started operations between Ahmedabad, Gujarat and Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, effective from January 11, 2024. These flights will establish direct connectivity between the two cities, providing leisure and business travellers with flight options to travel to the historic city of Ayodhya. The new connection between Ahmedabad and Ayodhya aims to enhance interstate accessibility and substantially reduce travel time between the two cities.

This is IndiGo’s second route from Ayodhya, enhancing connectivity with the newly inaugurated airport. IndiGo had previously started operations between Delhi and Ayodhya from January 10, 2024, and the Mumbai-Ayodhya route from January 15, 2024.

IndiGo starts flight operations between Ayodhya and Delhi

January 6, 2024: IndiGo has commenced operations from the inaugurated Maharishi Valmiki International Airport in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. The first pair of flights will operate between Delhi and Ayodhya on January 6, 2024. This will be followed by daily operations between the cities from January 10, 2024. Vinay Malhotra, head of global sales, IndiGo, said, “We are delighted to commence operations between Delhi and Ayodhya, which is the 86th domestic destination and the 118th overall destination in the 6E network. We are also looking forward to connecting Ahmedabad and Mumbai to this sacred city in the coming weeks. As India’s leading carrier, we remain committed to providing our customers with seamless connectivity through the 6E network across India as well as overseas and delivering on our promise of providing affordable, on-time, courteous, and hassle-free travel experiences.”

IndiGo announces direct connectivity between Mumbai and Ayodhya

December 26, 2023: Indian airline IndiGo has announced direct connectivity between Mumbai and Ayodhya, effective January 15, 2024. These daily flights will provide travellers, direct accessibility to Ayodhya making their journey smoother and shorter. Earlier, IndiGo announced inaugural operations from the Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram International Airport in Ayodhya from Delhi with effect from December 30, 2023. Subsequently, commercial operations from Delhi to Ayodhya from January 6, 2024, and from Ahmedabad to Ayodhya will commence from January 11.

FAQs

Does Ayodhya have an airport?

Yes. Ayodhya has an airport.

Is the Ayodhya Airport operational?

The Ayodhya Airport will be operational on January 6, 2024.

Who is constructing the Ayodhya Airport?

The Airports Authority of India is constructing the Ayodhya Airport after the UP government signed a memorandum of understanding with the agency in February 2014.

How to reach Ayodhya by air?

Since, the airport in Ayodha has yet to become operational, flyer can fly till UP state capital Lucknow and approach Ayodha by road. The city is nearly 2 and a half hours drive from Lucknow.

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