To ease passenger rush, planners mull second airport in seven Indian cities

Rising passenger volumes at airports, driven by demands of a growing economy and rising disposable incomes, are putting tremendous pressure on the existing aviation infrastructure.

This is pushing planners to look at the option of building a second airport in some of the cities where existing airports are reaching their full capacity. At least seven cities are on the radar.

"There are 2-3 things that the government should look into while deciding on an airport. So, a city would need a second airport if the existing one cannot expand like in the case of Mumbai or in case of horizontal expansion of a city like Delhi. The government should plan second airports in a manner that they take care of the traffic growth for the next 3-4 decades," said Sanjay Sethi, Nestor consulting CEO, a Delhi-based infrastructure advisory firm.