Uttar Pradesh Government has chosen May 15 as the Date of Opening of the New International Airport in Noida

At a meeting of all stakeholders convened on March 10, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed his displeasure over the delay in the execution of the Noida International Airport, particularly in terms of the terminal building. As a result, the Uttar Pradesh government has now ordered the airport's concessionaire to complete and get domestic flight operations off the ground by May 15, with international flights starting from June 25.

As of now, the airport is lagging behind by six months, starting from the initial date of completion, which was pegged at September 29, 2024, and later shifted to an estimated April 2025 timeline. That, too, seems unlikely. The Chief Minister then instructed them to ensure the implementation of delay penalties as stipulated in the contract.

An amount of Rs 10 lakh was imposed on the concessionaire every day as fines, the period starting from January 1 as soon as the concessionaire passed the three-month grace period given to complete the airport from the initial deadline. The SAFA period started just when the airport construction got under way. This amounts to Rs 3 crore every month until the airport commences functioning.

Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL) CEO Arun Vir Singh, the state government's SVP under-authority to handle the monstrous project, stated, "The concession agreement was signed in October 2020 once the right of way was provided, constituting as the total title conveyance of the land to the concessionaire. The appointment dates were hit very badly due to the COVID period, leading us to situations where the project caused some initial setbacks. Tata Projects was awarded the construction contract in June 2022. Together, understanding these conditions, we extended the grace period of three more months. This Rs-10 lakh fine will now continue until the airport is operational.

To make sure there is zero slippage and adherence to the deadline, NIAL has asked YIAPL to submit a "catch-up" plan. The deadline was revised as the terminal building was also a matter of much delay. Domestic as well as international flights there were to be operated on a staggered schedule, since the international portion needs yet more time to uncloak. The airport was designed to have six jetways for the time being instead of the ten originally planned for.

Tata Projects, NIAL CEO Singh spoke, which has been awarded the contract for engineering work at the airport. The delay is largely the result of the extended monsoons during 2024. Currently, about 8,000 workers are at the site, and the company has planned to boost progress even more by way of hiring more labor, deploying more Mech, and subcontracting for partial jobs.

"While not in the first meeting with stakeholders, the next discussion was conducted post the CM's meeting with all stakeholders--the Airports Authority, DGCA too--along the line of a catch-up plan," informed Singh.

Further affecting the pace of construction is the detailed iron-that facade of the Terminal building. To this day, the terminal's design courtyard and the visually aesthetically pleasing building elegantly have been resounding the theme of the ghats--Varanasi and Haridwar--besides accommodating a central court to blend in natural daylight and ventilation. The wavy roof design is meant to eulogize the texture of the flowing rivers as well.

Upon inquiry, a spokesperson for YIAPL said, "We are all working towards one common goal of completing this project within the revised timeline. This project has been supported by the government right from the very beginning. We have built a strong partnership, working closely with them. Our vision collectively is to build a world-class airport for Western Uttar Pradesh. The government is definitely focusing on connectivity, security, support services, and other fundamental needs. Only at this point can we call it an actual public and private collaboration."