Stressing the need to have small airports in the state, West Bengal chief minster Buddhadeb Bhattacharya on Wednesday announced the plans to have two more small airports at Kachrapara and Barrackpore areas near Kolkata. The proposed sites for the airports are currently occupied by the Indian Air Force, which has agreed to lease out land to private parties interested in building airports for civil use, according to the chief minster.Speaking at the 120th annual general meeting for the Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bhattacharya further informed that another small airport at the Cooch Behar district of West Bengal would be operational by November this year, and the proposal to have a new airport at Andal near the emerging industrial hub of Durgapur has got Centre's nod.
