The commissioning of Manohar International Airport at Mopa is expected to significantly bring down airfares, giving relief to passengers, disclosed a GMR official. In addition, the new airport promises better facilities for airlines, including lower parking fees and better refuelling. However, while lower airfares are welcome, it is still not a consolation for all passengers, especially those travelling from South Goa, to catch a flight.
On Tuesday, it came to light that several airlines are cancelling their flights from Dabolim and rescheduling them at Mopa, inconveniencing people who have made prior bookings. For example, a parent who had booked a Goa-Mumbai-Dehradun flight to get to his son's boarding school on January 8 now gets a message that the flight has been rescheduled from Mopa, meaning it will not take off from Dabolim. The fact that airlines are looking at better aircraft utilisation cannot be grounds to treat passengers with such disdain.
Secondly, while there is an unofficial announcement that flights will begin operations at Mopa on January 5, 2023, there is no confirmation from any quarters, and timelines keep flying, making a mockery of those chasing schedules and making prior bookings. Moreover, top GMR officials are tight-lipped about when the operations are going to begin and have disowned the January 5 dateline.
Moreover, there are categorical assurances given by senior ministers in the government, including Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and even Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that Dabolim would not shut down. And there was an assurance on flight division between Dabolim and Mopa so that both airports operate simultaneously. Even now, the public is told that the civil aviation ministry is looking into the matter, and no further details have come out.
If the airlines are making a beeline to Mopa for cost efficiency, we need to understand if there could be a compulsion on airlines to go to Dabolim. In this regard, any intervention appears theoretical. What is disturbing is the "take it, or leave it" attitude of airlines asking passengers to move to Mopa or cancel their tickets.
Everyone will agree that the Manohar International Airport is way better in terms of aesthetics and facilities, but the passengers cannot be put through hardships for these.
The road to Mopa, especially if one travels from the South, is a test of patience. There are severe bottlenecks at Zuari bridge and Porvorim. A few weeks back, PWD Minister Nilesh Cabral inspected the bridge, and officials even conducted a load test. The lights have been tested, and the deck is cleared. The PWD Minister now says the bridge will be thrown open before December end.
On Wednesday, the Manohar International Airport got a 'platinum' rating under the Indian Green Building Council's (IGBC) new rating system, the first airport terminal in the country to get this distinction. There is such a lot of positivity that flows in with the new airport, and the grandiose opening on Sunday was a testimony to that. However, what has been sidelined is the inconvenience of passengers and the roadblocks they could face. Before the operations can begin, every effort should be made to make travel to the airport a seamless experience. Also, with airlines calling the shots, there should be clarity on who will fly from Dabolim.
