Guwahati Airport is among the eight airports in the country, which generated revenue for Airports Authority of India (AAI). More than 90 per cent of airports run by Airports Authority of India (AAI) are running into losses, according to government data, in 2016-17.
Out of 102 airports, AAI could only generate profits from Kolkata, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Leh, Lucknow, Mangalore, Patna and Tiruchirappalli. While airports at Kolkata, Lucknow, Leh, Guwahati and Tiruchirappalli generated profits last year too, Bhubaneswar, Patna and Mangalore airports are new entrants in the list of profitable airports.
Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha recently revealed the information about state-run loss-making airports in the Lok Sabha while giving a written reply on the issue.
Delhi’s Safdarjung Airport, which is occasionally used for VVIP chopper flights, incurred the maximum losses of Rs 92 crore followed by Amritsar and Bhopal airports which saw losses of Rs 50.52 crore and Rs 49.53 crore respectively.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is planning to invest Rs 1,500 crore for developing airports, most of which are loss-making airports. Jayant Sinha informed the Lok Sabha that AAI is taking several steps to ensure that the loss-making airports become viable, reported The New Indian Express.