Tripura Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury says Kailashahar Airport revival remains stalled due to financial and technical hurdles. The long-pending project awaits approvals, funding and infrastructure upgrades, while residents continue demanding restoration of air connectivity to boost tourism, trade and regional development.
The long-standing demand to revive the defunct Kailashahar Airport has once again been pushed into uncertainty, with Tripura Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury stating that the project continues to face major financial and technical challenges.
Residents of Kailashahar have been campaigning for nearly three decades for the reopening of the airport. Ahead of the 2018 Tripura Assembly elections, the BJP had promised that the airport would be revived if the party formed the government. After the BJP assumed office, hopes were rekindled as officials from the state government and the Airports Authority of India jointly inspected the airport on several occasions and carried out surveys.
However, speaking to reporters after a review meeting in Kailashahar following his appointment as the guardian minister for Unakoti district, Chowdhury indicated that the project is yet to receive the necessary approvals and funding.
The minister said a team from the Central government had inspected the airport and later held discussions with Chief Minister Manik Saha. The Chief Minister had asked the Central team to submit a detailed report, but the report has not yet been received.
According to Chowdhury, the airport in its present condition is incapable of handling Airbus or other large aircraft. He said additional land acquisition would be necessary to expand the airport, requiring an estimated investment of Rs 400-500 crore. A decision on funding would have to be taken by either the Central or the state government, he added.
The minister also revealed that the Union Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) had earlier written to both the Chief Minister and him regarding the possibility of introducing 19-seater aircraft services from Kailashahar. However, he pointed out that any airline would first assess the commercial viability of such operations before launching services.
He further said that even for operating 19-seater aircraft, the existing runway and airport infrastructure would require extensive renovation, involving substantial expenditure. The matter remains under the Chief Minister’s consideration, and the state government will take an appropriate decision at the right time, he added.
The minister’s remarks have triggered widespread disappointment across Kailashahar, with many residents expressing frustration on social media over the continued delay in fulfilling a long-promised project. Several users questioned why visible progress had not been made despite the presence of what they described as a “double-engine government” at the Centre and in the state.
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Local residents maintain that reopening Kailashahar Airport would significantly boost the economy of Unakoti district and the entire undivided North Tripura region by improving connectivity, promoting tourism, encouraging trade and investment, generating employment and strengthening access to education and healthcare.
For nearly 30 years, social organisations, citizens’ forums, traders’ bodies, political parties and residents have organised memoranda, signature campaigns, demonstrations and human chains demanding the airport’s revival. Despite repeated assurances, inspections and official meetings over the years, the absence of a concrete timeline has fuelled growing public frustration.
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Residents say the airport is far more than an infrastructure project and could become a catalyst for the development of the entire undivided North Tripura region. They now hope that both the Centre and the state government will move beyond assurances and take concrete steps to restore air connectivity from Kailashahar.
