New Delhi's domestic airport terminal likely to be shut for a few weeks, sources say
01/07/2024 12:33
By Rishika Sadam and Aditi Shah
NEW DELHI, July 1 (Reuters) - New Delhi's main domestic
terminal is likely to remain shut for a few weeks with debris
still scattered outside the airport following last week's roof
collapse, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told
Reuters on Monday.
A portion of the roof, canopy and several beams at the
domestic terminal 1 collapsed after heavy rain in the Indian
capital on Friday, killing one person, crushing cars and
disrupting flights ever since.
The incident has put a spotlight on challenges Prime
Minister Narendra Modi's government faces to overhaul
infrastructure projects and has raised concerns about lax
regulation and compliance issues.
The recently expanded terminal is mostly used by low-cost
carriers IndiGo INGL.NS and SpiceJet SPJT.BO , and has a
capacity to handle 40 million passengers annually, but its
closure is set to increase pressure on two other terminals from
where domestic flights also operate.
A source at GMR Airports Infrastructure GMRI.NS , which
operates the airport, said "it could take few weeks, if the
issue is small but very likely that it could take beyond a month
if the problem is major".
"No matter how much time it takes, the terminal will not be
re-opened until everything has been checked thoroughly," the
person added.
GMR said in a statement that it was "too early" to provide
details of when the terminal could resume operations.
Delhi airport handles 1,400 flights a day across its three
terminals. Flight operations from T1 were currently limited to
less than 15% of the total as they were gradually resuming after
the recent expansion and refurbishment.
More than 22,000 passengers have been affected in the past
three days, with around 90 flights moved to other terminals,
government data shows.
On Monday, a Reuters photographer was not permitted to enter
the accident site as the area has been cordoned off by
authorities.
The second source said that the debris would not be removed
until an inspection was complete, which was likely to take a few
weeks.
IndiGo and SpiceJet said their passengers were being
informed about terminal changes.
However, on Monday, two passengers told Reuters near T1 they
had no information on any change in their departure terminal.
"I'm running late and it will affect my timing to board my
flight," said Satyam, a 22-year old student who only gave his
first name.
(Reporting by Tanvi Mehta, Aditi Shah, Anushree Fadnavis in New
Delhi and Rishika Sadam in Hyderabad; Writing by Tanvi Mehta;
Editing by Aditya Kalra and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
((tanvi.mehta@thomsonreuters.com; https://twitter.com/TanviMehta710;))