Noida/Lucknow, Jun 15: Around 170 farmers from Jewar whose land was acquired for the development of the Noida International Airport became part of a historic moment on Monday as they boarded one of the first passenger flights from the newly operational greenfield airport to Lucknow.
Almost all of them experienced air travel for the first time, Jewar MLA Dhirendra Singh said.
The passengers met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow around noon.
A special PA by IndiGo crew greeted the villagers, lauding their efforts in the making of the greenfield project.
The group included several elderly farmers and women from villages in the Jewar region of Gautam Buddh Nagar district. Many of the women were seen holding boarding passes as they arrived at the airport, built on land that was once used for farming.
“Today, nearly 99 per cent of the farmers who travelled on this flight had never sat in an aircraft before and never imagined that they would get an opportunity to fly,” Singh said while interacting with the farmers in Lucknow.
He said the expressions of happiness and satisfaction on their faces reflected the significance of the moment.
“Those who cultivated this land with their hard work and gave it up for development have today travelled by air from the same place. This is a symbol of trust, participation and progress,” the MLA said.
Earlier in the day, several passengers shared their emotions before boarding the flight.
“We are very delighted and obliged to travel on the first flight from Noida International Airport to Lucknow. What we had envisioned is becoming a reality before us today,” passenger Abrar Khan said.
Another passenger, Hera Rashid, a young woman from a nearby village, described the occasion as historic, saying the airport was the first international airport in the area and that she was happy to be part of the inaugural journey.
A farmer, aged around 65, who was among the passengers, said he gave up 30 bighas of land for the airport project and was happy to see the region develop.
The special flight also saw an emotional gesture onboard, with the IndiGo crew making a special announcement recognising the contribution of the flying farmers.
In Lucknow, Adityanath welcomed the farmers in a meeting that was attended by several airport officials.
Chief Minister’s advisor Awanish Kumar Awasthi, state minister Suresh Kumar Khanna, Additional Chief Secretary (Civil Aviation) Deepak Kumar, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority CEO Rakesh Singh, and officials from IndiGo and Noida International Airport were part of the meeting.
Adityanath had earlier said that farmers were the foundation of the state’s prosperity and their contribution to development must be respected.
Deepak Kumar said the first flight had transformed a long-awaited dream into reality and that the land contributors were being honoured through the launch-day journey.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the project on November 25, 2021. He inaugurated the airport on March 28 this year.
Deepak Kumar said the airport is for the time being operational with one runway and a passenger capacity of 1.2 crore, and will eventually be expanded to five runways, catering to 22.5 crore passengers annually.
Noida International Airport commenced passenger flight operations on Monday, connecting the region with Lucknow and other destinations.
The airport is expected to strengthen connectivity and boost economic activity in western Uttar Pradesh and the National Capital Region. (PTI)
