The Airports Authority of India (AAI) Sunday said the state-of-the-art new terminal building of Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport in Agartala will be commissioned after six months, well before Durga Puja this year. While the project was initially expected to be completed by April this year, officials say adding latest technological inputs delayed the project and it would take another 6-7 months.

Speaking to media in Agartala on Sunday, Regional Director (NE) Sanjeev Jindal said, “This terminal building is being built with financial involvement of Rs 500 crores and is capable of handling 4-5 times more passengers than the existing terminal.”

“It takes some time to operate such a new building since IT incorporation is time consuming. Moreover, Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, Ministry of Environment, fire clearances and approval of Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is required.

We are expecting to complete all the works of the building within three months. I feel we can commission the new terminal within another 3-4 months, well before the Durga Puja this year,” he added.

MBB Airport is currently the second busiest airport in North-East India with close to 1.8 million passengers in 2019, after Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport of Guwahati.

The airport’s history dates back to 1942, when it as built as a military airstrip on a piece of land donated by the then king of Tripura – Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Bahadur. The airport was renamed after him on July 2018.

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