The decision to allow the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) to charge an Airport Development Fee (ADF) and the company’s decision to securitise this flow of future incomes is truly innovative, and offers pointers on how to finance infrastructure projects in the future (‘Government banks help DIAL bridge funding gap’,
May 1). This has been opposed by purists who argue that consumers are being penalised for no fault of theirs by having to pay an extra levy. But look at it another way — had DIAL not been allowed to raise revenues in this fashion, there would have been no new airport and passengers would have to continue to use the dirty and inefficient AAI airport. Consumers have to get used to paying appropriate user-charges. When it comes to levying appropriate charges on rice and wheat for the poor, most commentators are quick to recommend it; the same, unfortunately, does not seem to apply to user-charges for the rich and middle classes.
Sanjay Trehan, New Delhi
