A substantial passenger traffic has been witnessed in a month after the commencement of operations at Halwara International Airport. As many as 7,008 passengers utilised the airport to fly to and from Ludhiana in 26 days (May 15 to June 10). After missing about a dozen deadlines, Halwara airport became operational on May 15.
According to airport data, 1,368 passengers arrived at Halwara Airport between June 1 and 10, averaging around 137 passengers per day. This marks a 31 per cent increase compared to the period between May 15 and May 31. Similarly, departures witnessed a substantial rise of 67 per cent during June 1 to 10, with 1,921 passengers travelling from the airport, averaging nearly 192 passengers daily. In May, when the flight operations started, the average arrival per day was 105 passengers while average departure was 115 passengers per day.
A review meeting with airport officials was held recently by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri during his visit to Ludhiana three days ago. He had come by air from Delhi to Halwara.
To mark the completion of one month of operations, airport authorities organised a series of activities at the airport. A selfie corner with a cardboard sculpture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was set up with the caption ‘Naye Bharat Ki Udaan’ where passengers enthusiastically clicked photographs.
Several events were organised to celebrate the occasion, including honouring airport staff, felicitating women employees, welcoming passengers with sweets and ‘tilak’ and the singing of Vande Mataram outside the main terminal premises.
An airport staff member said that although the airport was currently functioning with limited manpower, operations were being managed efficiently and every effort was being made to ensure hassle-free experience for passengers.
