Agartala, May 6: Senior Tripura Congress MLA Birajit Sinha on Monday urged the Centre to take steps to revive the Kailashahar airport in Unakoti district.
The airport, along with those at Kamalpur in Dhalai district and Khowai in Khowai district, was operationlised when Jawaharlal Nehru was the Prime Minister, but remained defunct for several years, he added.
“Nehru built the Kailashahar, Khowai and Kamalpur airports for better connectivity. However, all three have remained shut for years”, Sinha told reporters.
He added that former PM Manmohan Singh had announced a plan to develop 100 airports across the country, and Kailashahar was included in that list.
“The Left Front government, which ruled the state for 25 years, failed to revive the strategically important airport”, he said.
Sinha said he has spoken to Chief Minister Manik Saha and Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury over the issue.
Kailashahar airport played a key role for security forces during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, he added.
“Since border tension is escalating due to the changing geo-political situation, there is an urgent need to revive Kailashahar airport. I urge the government to look into it”, he said.
Currently, Tripura has only one operational airport — Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport — in Agartala. (PTI)
