Giving a fillip to development of the upnorth region of Kerala, Defence Minister A K Antony today launched work on Kannur airport which will be the fourth international airport of the state.
Speaking after the 'ground-breaking' ceremony of the first phase of the Rs 1,590 crore project, he said commencement of the work marked the realisation of a long-cherished dream of the region.
He lauded efforts by the present and previous governments to ensure that such an ambitious project materialised,
"Bringing about development is not a solo race, but teamwork like a relay race in which various athletes change baton in different rounds," he said, adding he expects the same spirit of cooperation and team work to be shown by all in each stage of completion of work of the airport.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy presided over the function in which Union Ministers K C Venugopal and Mullapally Ramachandran, state minister in charge of airports K Babu and deputy leader of the opposition in Kerala Assembly, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan were also present.
The state government holds 35 per cent stake in the project, Airports Authority of India 26 per cent, Oil major BPCL 23 per cent and 16 per cent from private participation.
The agreement between the state government and L&T Mumbai to undertake the first phase was finalised in November last.
Of the private participation, sale of six per cent has already been completed.
The terminal building, air traffic control tower and administrative building are expected to be commissioned in 2015.
Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode and Nedumbassery in Kochi have international airports in the state.
