Cracks In Rs 500-Crore Project? Airport Wall Collapses After Rain In Madhya Pradesh's Rewa
A section of the boundary wall of the newly-constructed Rewa Airport in Madhya Pradesh, built at a cost of Rs 500 crore, has collapsed barely months after completion, raising serious questions about construction quality and flood preparedness of one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects in the state.
According to locals, the ground beneath the wall gave way due to heavy rainfall, causing a portion of the airport's outer boundary to crumble during the night. This is not the first time the boundary wall has failed - a similar breach was reported during the rains last year, even before the airport became operational.
Rewa Airport was envisioned as a game-changer for the Vindhya region. With Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating the project virtually from Varanasi, the airport was completed in a record 18 months on 323 acres of land acquired from five villages.
The facility boasts a 2,300-meter-long runway and is currently operating two flights connecting Rewa to Bhopal via Khajuraho and Jabalpur. While it now handles only 19-seater aircraft, the plan is to scale up to 72-seaters in the coming months. The airport has been licensed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and was designed to serve the region for the next 50 years.
But even before it could take off in full swing, its foundation had begun to sink, literally.
In the past 24 hours, Rewa has received 8 inches of relentless rainfall. The Bichhiya and Bihar rivers, lifelines of the district, have overflowed, submerging large parts of the city. At least four localities along the riverbanks are now inundated, with three to four feet of water inside homes and shops.
Shockingly, even the house of Gudh MLA Nagendra Singh was not spared. Speaking to reporters, Mr Singh said, "Rewa city has been turned into a pond. Unless the river is deepened and the floodplain is managed, this problem will continue year after year."
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