MUMBAI: The Government of Maharashtra has decided to develop a well-planned city around Shirdi airport in Ahmednagar on the lines of Naina (Navi Mumbai Airport-Influenced Notified Area) project in Navi Mumbai. It was decided during a meeting of the Maharashtra Airport Development Corporation (MADC), which was presided by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday, September 29.
The whole influence area around the airport has been named ‘ASHA’ (Area around Shirdi Airport). MADC is a special company under the state government which plans, constructs, operates, and maintains the state’s airports. The special organisation has appointed as the special planning authority of the ASHA project. The officials said that the company will prepare a detailed project report (DPR) for the project.
Shirdi is a popular temple town of the country as it is the shrine of spiritual guru Sai Baba. The Shirdi airport is 14 km from Shirdi and is spread over a 35- hectare area. In terms of passenger load, Shirdi airport has surpassed airports such as Aurangabad, Nanded, Nashik and Kolhapur. The state government is planning to acquire around 1600-hecatres of land around the airport in order to develop the city.