Agartala's Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport set to become 3rd International Airport in NE

Agartala: Northeast is all set to get its third international airport, yes! You heard it right. After Guwahati and Imphal, Agartala's Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport is set to become the third international airport in the northeastern region by the end of this year or by early 2020, claims a media report.

The report also states that the Airport Authority of India (AAI) had informed that their ongoing works to make Agartala's Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport as an international one would be completed by the end of the year. But if the works are hampered due to the monsoon season or any other factor, then the declaration would be made by early 2020, informed the Tripura Transport and Tourism Minister Pranajit Singha Roy to a media agency.

It is to be noted that the AAI had undertaken a 438-crore project to upgrade the Agartala Airport to International standards by providing world-class facilities.

Sources also informed that the expenditure for the upgradation of the Agartala Airport is expected to be around 438 crores.

Agartala State Government had been constantly urging the AAI to complete the works early and maintain the stipulated standards, informed Minister Pranajit Singha Roy further.

On the other hand, Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb recently had a discussed about the upgradation of the Agartala Airport with the Civil Aviation Minister in New Delhi.

According to an official of the Chief Minister's Office in Tripura, Union civil aviation minister Raj Kumar Singh responded positively when Deb requested him to expedite the works.

Agartala Airport was built in the year 1942 by then King Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Bahadur.

The airport in Agartala is the second busiest in the northeast after Guwahati's Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport. The Imphal airport was declared as an international one two years ago.

During World War II, the Agartala airport was used by the 4th Combat Cargo Group of the US Army Air Forces 10 Air Force, flying Curtiss C-46 Commando aircraft over Myanmar.

The airport is located 20 km north of the capital city and sits just along the Bangladesh border.

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