MALAPPURAM: The Kerala government has not allowed Rs.50 lakhs for the primary works of extending the length of the runway at the Karipur Tabletop Airport. Twenty-one persons had died in an air crash after it skid from the runway and crashed. The Transport Department has not yet taken a decision even after five months. This amount is for the survey for the acquisition of the land for runway development and for the environmental impact study.

The meeting convened by the Chief Secretary in July had decided to acquire the land by December 31 and to hand it over to the Airport Authority of India (AAI). The CM had announced it also. Five months have passed now and no further progress has been made. The Aviation Ministry has demanded that the land must be transferred before March, 2023.

The government fears that if the Rs.50 lakhs is given then the government will to take the burden of Rs.73 crores give compensation for the land acquired. The (AAI) will not give the full amount of the acquired land.

The development must be done at security region at both the ends of the runway called Runway End Safety Area or RESA. The total amount needed to acquire land and develop RESA is Rs.165.77 crores. The AAI has demanded that out of this amount, it will give Rs.100 crores and the rest Rs.65.77 crores must be paid by the state government. However, the government insists that the whole amount must be taken by the central government.

If the land is not acquired, the AAI has decided to shorten the runway and to develop the RESA. That means the 2,860-meter runway will be reduced to 2,540 meters. The RESA will be stretched from 90 meters to 240 meters. For big airplanes, this is not enough. If land is acquired the length of the runway can be kept as it is and the RESA extended. The committee which investigated the air crash has suggested the lengthening of RESA. After the plane crash of 2020, the Karipur Airport has banned big aircrafts. Emigrants from Kerala use this airport the most.