A glimpse of changing Bihar, flyers feel as new terminal at Patna airport begins operations

Time of India

2 days ago

Patna: Passengers travelling to and from Bengaluru were the first to use the state-of-the-art new terminal building of Jayprakash Narayan International Airport in Patna, which began its operations on Tuesday after its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 29.
Among the passengers on Day 1 was Union minister Giriraj Singh who said, "I got the opportunity to fly as the first passenger from the newly built terminal of the Patna airport. This was not just a journey but a glimpse of the changing Bihar, which is modern, and full of convenience and confidence," he said.
Also among the Day-1 passengers was BJP MP Sanjay Jaiswal. "I am among the fortunate flyers travelling from the new terminal on its first day of operation.
When I used to see airports in other states and compared them to Patna airport, I felt we were lagging behind. However, with the blessings of the PM, not only has Patna airport has become world-class, the foundation for a second airport has also been laid, making Patna the third city in the country to have two airports," he said.
Talking to the reporters outside the terminal building, the MP added he was extremely grateful to the Airports Authority of India and its architects for the beautiful design.
"We always felt there should be more flights from here, and now 75 flights will operate, providing customers with cheaper ticket rates," he said.
Many people inside the terminal were seen taking photos and selfies with beautiful murals and Mithila paintings like that of Chhath festivities, Chanakya, Lord Buddha, Mahavira and the cradle of civilisation. A cultural programme was held in the morning at the entry gate, soon after it was opened for the flyers.
A grand welcome was given to the passengers at the entrance gate of the new terminal with application of sandalwood tilak on their foreheads and by sprinkling rose water.
Airport director Krishna Mohan Nehra said the flyers were happy with the grand welcome, which was followed by the cultural event.
The first flight between Bengaluru and Patna landed here at 7.14am with around 170 passengers. The flight 6E-5127 departed at 8.09am for Bengaluru.
The airport is now operating 98 flights, including 49 arrivals and 49 departures, a day.
Special security arrangements have been made at the Patna airport, keeping in mind the safety of passengers. "About 20 jawans of Patna police have been deployed at the entry and exit gates for the next 10 days," Patna senior superintendent of police (SSP) Avakash Kumar said.
Apart from this, 20 additional traffic police personnel are also being deployed.
The airport police station in charge has been ordered to regularly patrol the entire area.
A flyer, Alok, however, noted some disorganisation and significant crowding at security checks on the terminal's opening day, suggesting teething issues as the operations began.
Another flyer, Gaurav Mehta, who was travelling to Mumbai, said there was a minor glitch, as the airlines seemed confused with the new set-up. "DigiYatra (contactless travel gate) was not functioning till afternoon, which caused minor chaos at the security gate.
Overall, the experience is good, and I believe things will settle with time," he said.
"The new terminal is much bigger, and there is a lot of space in the security hold area. The interior design of the building looks beautiful," Priyanka Kashyap, another traveller flying to Delhi, said.
The new building features five aerobridges (of which one is operational initially), 64 check-in counters, five conveyor belts, 13 boarding gates, eight inline XBIS machines, seven hand baggage scanning machines in the security hold area with ATRS and a multi-level car parking for 1,100 vehicles among other facilities.
It has the capacity to accommodate one crore passengers annually and 3,000 at peak time.
Patna: Passengers travelling to and from Bengaluru were the first to use the state-of-the-art new terminal building of Jayprakash Narayan International Airport in Patna, which began its operations on Tuesday after its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 29.
Among the passengers on Day 1 was Union minister Giriraj Singh who said, "I got the opportunity to fly as the first passenger from the newly built terminal of the Patna airport.
This was not just a journey but a glimpse of the changing Bihar, which is modern, and full of convenience and confidence," he said.
Also among the Day-1 passengers was BJP MP Sanjay Jaiswal. "I am among the fortunate flyers travelling from the new terminal on its first day of operation. When I used to see airports in other states and compared them to Patna airport, I felt we were lagging behind. However, with the blessings of the PM, not only has Patna airport has become world-class, the foundation for a second airport has also been laid, making Patna the third city in the country to have two airports," he said.
Talking to the reporters outside the terminal building, the MP added he was extremely grateful to the Airports Authority of India and its architects for the beautiful design. "We always felt there should be more flights from here, and now 75 flights will operate, providing customers with cheaper ticket rates," he said.
Many people inside the terminal were seen taking photos and selfies with beautiful murals and Mithila paintings like that of Chhath festivities, Chanakya, Lord Buddha, Mahavira and the cradle of civilisation.
A cultural programme was held in the morning at the entry gate, soon after it was opened for the flyers.
A grand welcome was given to the passengers at the entrance gate of the new terminal with application of sandalwood tilak on their foreheads and by sprinkling rose water.
Airport director Krishna Mohan Nehra said the flyers were happy with the grand welcome, which was followed by the cultural event.
The first flight between Bengaluru and Patna landed here at 7.14am with around 170 passengers.
The flight 6E-5127 departed at 8.09am for Bengaluru. The airport is now operating 98 flights, including 49 arrivals and 49 departures, a day.
Special security arrangements have been made at the Patna airport, keeping in mind the safety of passengers. "About 20 jawans of Patna police have been deployed at the entry and exit gates for the next 10 days," Patna senior superintendent of police (SSP) Avakash Kumar said.
Apart from this, 20 additional traffic police personnel are also being deployed.
The airport police station in charge has been ordered to regularly patrol the entire area.
A flyer, Alok, however, noted some disorganisation and significant crowding at security checks on the terminal's opening day, suggesting teething issues as the operations began.
Another flyer, Gaurav Mehta, who was travelling to Mumbai, said there was a minor glitch, as the airlines seemed confused with the new set-up. "DigiYatra (contactless travel gate) was not functioning till afternoon, which caused minor chaos at the security gate.
Overall, the experience is good, and I believe things will settle with time," he said.
"The new terminal is much bigger, and there is a lot of space in the security hold area. The interior design of the building looks beautiful," Priyanka Kashyap, another traveller flying to Delhi, said.
The new building features five aerobridges (of which one is operational initially), 64 check-in counters, five conveyor belts, 13 boarding gates, eight inline XBIS machines, seven hand baggage scanning machines in the security hold area with ATRS and a multi-level car parking for 1,100 vehicles among other facilities. It has the capacity to accommodate one crore passengers annually and 3,000 at peak time.