Ceiling Collapse at Port Blair Airport Raises Concerns Days After Inauguration
- Posted on July 24, 2023
- News
- By Sakshi Gupta
- 313 Views
Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi
virtually inaugurated the new integrated terminal building of Veer Savarkar
International Airport in Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar islands, a part of the
ceiling collapsed due to strong winds, sparking criticism from the Opposition.
The incident came to light when pictures and
videos circulated online showing the false ceiling of the newly-built structure
hanging after being hit by heavy winds. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh took to
Twitter to express his concerns, blaming the state of affairs in 'New India'
for such incidents and accusing the Prime Minister of inaugurating unfinished
or substandard infrastructure.
In response, civil aviation minister
Jyotiraditya Scindia clarified that the panels were intentionally loosened to
install CCTV cameras, and the damage occurred in an area outside the terminal
building. He urged Ramesh to seek explanations rather than resorting to
sensationalism.
The Airport Authority of India also released a
statement on Twitter, explaining that the false ceiling collapsed due to gusty
winds after being loosened for the final alignment of CCTV. The authorities
assured that the false ceiling and other installations inside the airport
building remained intact.
An airport official dismissed the incident as
minor, stating that it was related to fixing issues during the installation of
CCTV cameras behind the panels.
The Veer Savarkar International Airport, built
at a cost of ₹710 crore, has the capacity to handle nearly 50 lakh passengers
annually and is spread across an area of around 40,800 square metres. The newly
inaugurated integrated terminal is yet to be made functional.
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