Bengaluru airport to get its first perishable cargo facility

Air India joint venture to set up 60k sq ft centre at Kempegowda International Airport

Air India SATS Airport Services, a joint venture between Air India and Singapore Airport Terminal Services, will have a 40,000-tonne per annum capacity perishable cargo handling centre 'AISATS Coolport' up and running at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) in the next 12 months. The joint venture between Air India and the Singapore Airport Terminal Services (SATS), broke ground for Bengaluru's first fully-dedicated perishable cargo handling centre, spread over 60,000 square feet, the 'AISATS Coolport', at the KIA on Monday.

"The facility will help enhance the status of Karnataka as the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and perishables hub of India," said Kaushik Mukherjee, chief secretary, Karnataka government.

The facility, with a provision of about 135 kilo Volt Ampere (KVA) power supply for its operations through solar energy, a first for an air freight terminal in India. The AISATS Coolport will cater to a wide range of commodities such as pharmaceutical products, fruits, vegetables and flowers. The facility will be equipped with a drug controller lab testing facility, separate ripening zone, land-side truck-docks, warehousing and re-distribution centres, cold room facilities with different temperature zones and a testing facility according to the plant quarantine requirements for European Union and US-bound shipments.

In addition, the modern AISATS Coolport will also have humidity-control and temperature monitoring facilities.

In recent years there has been a substantial increase in perishable cargo handling volume. Since 2010, AISATS Bengaluru has witnessed a compound annual growth rate of 37.9 per cent. This facility is expected to create more jobs for the local community in the process, according to AISATS. AISATS also aims to develop a training facility for vocational courses to handle pharmaceutical, biotechnology and perishable products according to specific requirements for its employees.

On the importance of such a facility, Ratna Prabha, additional chief secretary, Karnataka government, said that during an earlier tenure of hers, in the undivided Andhra Pradesh, many export-oriented units (EOUs) relating to fisheries and other perishable products went bust as they did not access to such a facility.

The upcoming AISATS Coolport will provide the required infrastructure to boost the movements of goods and enhance efficient handling of perishable products, including in agricultural and pharma sector by creating sufficient storage capacity, minimising wastage and operational cost efficiencies through innovative solutions using modern and environment-friendly equipments.

AISATS' Bengaluru Airfreight Terminal has also received its Good Distribution Practices (GDP) certification for handling pharmaceutical products. With the GDP certification and the AISATS Coolport, AISATS aims to provide world-class and best in-class industry-recognised quality standards in every aspect of its facilities and services and for the environment.