After airport survey, 98 of 377 flight hurdles removed
Kolkata: Despite repeated warnings and ongoing efforts, only 98 out of 377 identified obstacles that directly come in the flight path of Kolkata airport were removed, according to the latest Obstacle Limitation Surface (OLS) study released by the airport authorities.
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The report highlights that numerous structures and objects still pose a serious threat to aircraft during take-offs and landings.
The OLS study, which assesses potential obstructions within designated airspace zones around the airports to ensure safe flight operations, revealed that while a significant number of tall trees were cut down and illegally constructed building floors of 15 structures were dismantled, the majority of hazards remain unaddressed.
Unremoved obstacles include mobile towers, water tanks, dish antennas, lightning arresters, and unauthorised high-rises.
The airport authorities have issued notices to the owners of the remaining structures, demanding their immediate removal.
"We've flagged these obstructions multiple times," said an airport official. "While there was some action, a substantial number of hazards still need to be dealt with."
The issue was recently discussed at the Airfield Environment Management Committee (AEMC) meeting, attended by senior state officials, including Nandini Chakraborty, principal secretary of Hill and Home Affairs, Bidhannagar Police commissioner Mukesh Kumar and officials of PWD, urban development department, Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and other surrounding municipalities.
One of the major hurdles cited by municipal bodies is the delay in receiving permissions from the state forest department for pruning or removing trees.
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The BMC requested the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to provide precise GPS coordinates of the trees identified for pruning. It was decided that AAI will share the coordinates of tall trees near the airport perimeter falling under six civic jurisdictions: BMC, New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA), Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Madhyamgram Municipal Corporation (MMC), New Barrackpore Municipality (NBM), and North Dum Dum Municipality (NDM).
Among these, Madhyamgram Municipality and Rohanda Gram Panchayat were recognised for their proactive approach, having removed 52 of the 114 tall trees.
The current report included detailed photographs and descriptions of remaining violations: high-rises in Rajarhat and New Town, dish antennas in Madhyamgram, lightning arresters in New Town, hoardings near BT College More, mobile towers in Michaelnagar and New Barrackpore, coconut trees in Michaelnagar, and electric poles along Jessore Road.
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