At the GCCI meeting, where a number of top people had been assembled to talk
about Goa's airport scenario, there were no real takers for the PM's high
powered (Mopa) committee's two airport proposal for the state. Of course,
there were some pro forma references to the need for two airports by some
speakers but no one dwelt on it meaningfully and holistically. It seemed
that each one was talking past the others and while some later speakers
scored debating points over earlier ones, there was no time or inclination
for any meaningful 'discussion' to arrive at some convergence for action.
The local papers have given extensive coverage to the proceedings in their
Oct 2 editions and at least one even spilled over to its Oct 3 issue.
(Unfortunately none of these have been cited in the daily capsules of Goanet
News Service which continues to turn a blind eye to vital airport issues of
Goa).
The comments which follow are drawn from these press reports except where
indicated otherwise. Goa's Rajya Sabha member provided a brief history of
the evolution of the Mopa project even criticising ICAO (rightly so in my
opinion) for its (two) shoddy studies (NT). Adhering to "his stated position
that Dabolim should be kept operational even after Mopa airport came
through" (TOI), he emphasised that "the real fight is for the expansion of
Dabolim the way it has been planned"(H). Meanwhile the Dabolim airport
director, who highlighted the plight of his own airport, made practically no
reference to the Mopa project and its implications. On the other hand, his
counterpart at Mopa, the North Goa Collector, waxed eloquently about the
need for a "modern .. international standard" (H), "world class" (NT)
airport and an avg. 100 kph road link, while trashing the conditions at
Dabolim for tourists (TOI). But when directly asked by a questioner about
Mopa's impact, his response was reported as either "clarifying that Mopa
would not adversely affect tourism in south Goa" (TOI) or "he declined to
comment" on such impact (H). I personally think it was the latter.
The Navy representative concentrated on politely rebutting various
allegations of the Rajya Sabha member and the Dabolim airport director (TOI,
H and NT). He too made practically no reference to Mopa. But he also made no
bones about the unlikelihood of any dramatic easing of military constraints
at Dabolim thus implicitly keeping up the pressure for a big project at
Mopa.
The GCCI president, in his opening remarks referred to the need for a
"sound" airport (i.e. not necessarily a "second" one!) and also to the
"expansion of Dabolim". I personally consider that GCCI is not a great
votary of a two airport system. It is essentially a proponent of the idea of
"Dabolim for now, Mopa for the future". We can reasonably conclude that the
Rs 500 crores to be sunk into a Dabolim upgrade may be just "water down the
Mandovi" some years hence (or a swanky place for the VVIPs, including
military, who would be the only ones allowed there after Mopa opens!) Who
can allow such criminal waste especially from an industry association?
Prior to this meeting I have heard the GCCI's DG repeatedly say that no
private party will come forward at Mopa if Dabolim continues because of the
project "cost". And "cost" cannot be trimmed, he claims, if the airport is
to be "world class". But shouldnt this be established through an objective
study, including all the possible options, rather than taken as an article
of faith? The GCCI president himself had called in the meeting for a
"factual view" to be taken rather than a merely political (or biased?) one.
While on this subject, I regret I was not able to take up with the Rajya
Sabha member about his fleeting idea of a "mini-airport" (reported
previously in TOI and relayed to goanetters) due to lack of time and
opportunity.
A brief mention needs to be made of the remarks, towards the end, of the
Chairman of Development Credit Bank who, as informed previously on goanet,
is the head of a Policy Advisory Group for Goa. He said "there was no
question about a new airport" adding "we will need Dabolim (civil enclave?)
as well". He suggested some "creative" partnership with Maharashtra over
Mopa (maybe like that between Himachal Pradesh and its neighbouring states)
though he seemed foxed by a question about Sindhudurg and its projected
meteoric progress. (Thus when discussing Goa we may need to keep Sindhudurg
as well as Karwar in mind, not just Dabolim and Mopa). I cant resist
mentioning that this worthy has Mauritius as a benchmark for Goa's
development planning overlooking the national status and expanse of ocean
which isolates it from the migration pressure which the Indian state of Goa
faces.
Other unintended consequences of various speakers' comments which can be
highlighted include:
1. The Rajya Sabha member's obsession with the Rs 500 crore plan and its
integrity. This might involve the complete demolition of the two existing
terminals and an integrated rebuild. It could inadvertently result in the
death of Dabolim civil enclave!
2. The Mopa project director (North Goa collector's) idea that Mopa should
be built today to handle 20-25 million passengers (nearly 10 times Dabolim's
peak annual traffic) by 2050. It is said that the best way to eat an
elephant is one bite at a time. The ideas of size at start-up, modular
expansion, phasing etc seem completely alien to this gentleman. He also
clubs the North-South Expressway project with Mopa. If the two are somehow
completed in tandem in 5 years then Dabolim civil enclave might again get
vaporised soon afterwards through disuse.
3. The Dabolim airport director envisages a doubling of aircraft movements
in 5 years and a further doubling in the next 5. At this rate the period of
congested traffic will have to be extended from 1 pm-6 or 7pm at present all
the way to 1 am, a total of 12 hours. If the envisaged terminal and apron
expansion as well as parallel (aircraft) taxi track plans are pushed through
somehow maybe the period can be compressed to 8 or 9 pm.We didnt hear any
plea from him for relief by Mopa though he had said Dabolim was "saturated"
since 2004.
To conclude, from the looks of things, we may well have a situation where
VVIPs comfortably get to use Dabolim, charter tourists get to use a world
class Mopa airport, equally conmfortably, and the aam aadmi (including the
domestic tourist) continues to be squeezed on to torturous road and rail
services! So, while the Oct 1 meeting was indeed a good start, it needs to
be urgently followed up by a session in which the same key players put their
heads together to consider the nuts and bolts of the economical,
(ecological) and equitable working of both Mopa airport and Dabolim civil
enclave in perpetuity. Maybe it would be best to have such a brainstorming
meeting (or a series of them) behind closed doors (or off-site) instead of
being open to the press/public as the present one was. We might get
somewhere through frank and sensible give and take and a sense of urgency
instead of just spinning wheels in a perpetual dialogue of the deaf.
