WATCH: Civil Aviation Minister Scindia inaugurates statue of VD Savarkar in Port Blair

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia inaugurated a statue of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar near the newly-constructed integrated terminal building of the international airport in Port Blair.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Veer Savarkar International Airport today.

Watch the video here:

#WATCH | Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia unveils a statue of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, in Port Blair.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the New Integrated Terminal Building of Veer Savarkar International Airport here today, via video conferencing. pic.twitter.com/MXJ5uowpWZ

— ANI (@ANI) July 18, 2023

With a total built-up area of around 40,800 sqm, the new building will be capable of handling about 50 lakh passengers annually.

“The new facility, built at a cost of around Rs 710 crore, will play a key role in enhancing connectivity to the island, a union territory,” said the Prime Minister’s Office in a statement, noting that boosting connectivity infrastructure has been a major focus of the government.

An apron suitable for two Boeing-767-400 and two Airbus-321 type aircraft has also been constructed at the airport at a cost of Rs 80 crore, making it suitable for parking 10 aircraft at a time, the PMO said.

The architectural design of the airport terminal resembles a shell-shaped structure, depicting the sea and islands.

The new airport terminal building has a number of sustainability features like a double-insulated roofing system to reduce heat gain, skylights to provide maximum inlet of sunlight during the day to reduce artificial light usage inside the building, LED lighting and low heat gain glazing, it added.

Rainwater catchment in an underground water tank, an on-site sewage treatment plant with 100 per cent of treated wastewater reused for landscaping and a 500 KW capacity solar power plant are some other features of the terminal building to ensure a minimal negative impact on the islands’ environment.

With inputs from agencies