The Odisha Development Forum (ODF) on Sunday demonstrated at the Maa Budhi Thakurani Temple here on Sunday demanding a full-fledged cargo based airport at Brahmapur.
The development came in the wake of a statement by the State Transport Minister that Rangailunda Airstrip soon would be developed and made functional to accommodate small 10-seat aircrafts.
Members of the forum led by its president Rama Prasad Tripathy renewed their decade old demand for a full-fledged airport rejecting the proposal for developing a small air strip. “The people of Brahmapur do not want an air strip, but a full-fledged airport like Jharsuguda to carry passengers directly to cities like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Surat, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, New Delhi and so on,” said Tripathy. Since the Rangailunda Airstrip absolutely has no scope for expansion,
because of the Berhampur University and Defence establishments, to accommodate big aircrafts and cargo-based aero planes, the reported statement of the Minister is like a lollipop to befool the people of Ganjam in general and the people of heritage city, Brahmapur in particular, Tripathy said. The Government and those who moot the idea of developing the existing Rangailunda Air strip for small 10-20 seated air cabs are giving a clear indication of sabotaging the hope for a full-fledged airport, he added.
The forum will soon start a door-to-door campaign at Brahmapur against the State Government’s move, warned Tripathy.