Arunachal: Hollongi Airport project engineer conferred with Sir Visvesveraya Award

Every year, AAI Engineers Guild celebrates Engineer’s Day on September 15 to commemorate the birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Sir Visvesveraya.

This year Sir Visvesveraya Award-2022 was conferred upon D. M. Sajnai and his team for Hollongi Airport (Arunachal Pradesh) Project.

The Greenfield Airport at Hollongi was announced in 2018 with Union minister Jayant Sinha announcing on Monday that the foundation stone for the proposed greenfield airport at Hollongi would be laid in December.

“The proposed 2,200-metre runway at the greenfield airport can handle jet aircraft that can provide direct flights to metro cities,” Sinha had said, adding that services could also be extended to international destinations.

A greenfield airport is an aviation facility that is planned, commissioned and built from scratch without destroying an existing structure. Arunachal Pradesh already has airports at Tezu and Pasighat.

Recently, the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly adopted a resolution for naming the Hollongi greenfield airport as Donyi Polo Airport, Itanagar.

Moving the resolution, State Civil Aviation Minister Nakap Nalo informed the House that the decision was taken to reflect the reverence of the indigenous people for the Sun ( Donyi’) and the Moon ( Polo’) symbolising an age-old tradition and rich cultural heritage of the tribal state.

The House unanimously adopted the resolution to take up the naming of the airport with the Union government.

Developed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) at an estimated cost of Rs 645 crore, the facility, located at Hollongi, is designed to be a greenfield airport with eight check-in counters and will be able to accommodate 200 passengers during peak hours of the day.

Hollongi is about 15 km from the state capital Itanagar.

At present, there is no airport in the vicinity of the state capital, the closest one being the Lilabari Airport in Assam’s North Lakhimpur district.

Once commissioned, the airport will be the first in the state with a runway of 2,300 m, suitable for the landing and take-off of Boeing 747.

With an area of 4,100 sq m, the airport will be equipped with all modern facilities for passengers.

It is likely to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October this year, sources at the state civil aviation department said.

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