In a bid to commence the construction of the Noida International Airport, a land lease agreement was signed by the Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday (17 July), reports Indian Express.

The agreement was approved by UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in a virtual ceremony and he sanctioned the handing over of 1,334 hectares of land to Noida International Airport Ltd (NIAL) under a 90-year land lease agreement.

A press statement released by the state government informed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of the airport next month.

Notably, the NIAL also signed a pact with the Zurich Airport International for the development of the international airport at Noida's Jewar.

The shareholder agreement was signed by NIAL CEO Arun Vir Singh and Yamuna International Airport Private Limited's (YIAPL) chief executive Christoph Schnellmann in the presence of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

It should be noted that YIAPL is a 100 per cent owned subsidiary of Zurich Airport International. It has been incorporated to develop the Noida International Airport in Jewar.

The Chief Minister was also quoted as saying that the airport will be a milestone in the region’s development and that time-bound progress was achieved despite Covid restrictions. He also commended the work of the administration in obtaining the co-operation of farmers in the Jewar region and for ensuring that land acquisition and resettlement took place without disputes and conflicts.

The first phase of the project has to be completed by 2023. However, the timeline, formulated before the Covid-19 pandemic struck, may see some changes.

When the first phase becomes operational, the Jewar International Airport will handle around 12 million passengers every year. The project will be spread over an area of 5,000 hectares and may have six to eight runways.