Andhra Pradesh has unveiled ambitious plans for developing five new greenfield airport, one of them less than 200 kms away from Hyderabad just across the borders of Telangana.
It was one of the several development plans announced in the annual Budget for the year 2016-17 presented by the State Finance Minister Y Ramakrishnudu on Thursday in the State Assembly. It was the first e-budget made accessible to the legislators on their Tabs as the Finance Minister started reaching his Budget speech.
The new greenfield airports will be developed at Nagarjuna Sagar (Guntur), Bhogapuram (Vizianagaram district), Dagadarti (Nellore district) Urakallu (Kurnool) and Dona Konda (Prakasham) in different parts of the State. Apart from this the Finance Minister announced that the plans to to expand the existing airports at Vijayawada and Rajahmahendravaram will be expedited.
The air traffic in the State had gone up by 59% during the current financial year, he said. The budget for 2016-17 with an outlay of Rs135689 crore has projected fiscal deficit of Rs20497 crore and revenue deficit of Rs4868 crore.
The size of this year’s budget was 20% bigger than last year. later the State agriculture minister Pulla Rao presented a separate budget of Rs16251 crore for agriculture and allied sectors.