Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has assured that the Dabolim airport in Goa will continue to be open for civilian aircraft, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Friday.
The airport, located in South Goa district, is part of the naval base INS Hansa.
Sawant, along with his cabinet colleagues Rohan Khaunte and Mauvin Godinho and BJP Rajya Sabha member Sadanand Tanavade is in Delhi at present.
The chief minister on Friday met Defence Minister Singh, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and Sports Minister Anurag Thakur.
Talking to PTI from the national capital, Sawant said he discussed various GST-related issues with Sitharaman. The state government also sought the finance ministry's support for hosting National Games 2023, scheduled to be held in October.
Advertisement
The finance minister assured wholehearted support for the state, he said.
“The Union government has always been supportive towards Goa. It had released funds for the state to celebrate `Goa at 60' initiative. Various infrastructure projects in the state are funded by the Centre,” he said.
Sports minister Thakur too promised all the support to the state for hosting the National Games, Sawant said.
In the meeting with Scindia, the Goa delegation discussed upgradation of infrastructure at the Dabolim Airport and more international and national connectivity to the newly built Manohar International Airport located in North Goa, he said.
They requested the Union minister to promote Goa under the open skies policy and increase international connectivity for the state, he said.
Advertisement
They also met Rajnath Singh who assured that the Dabolim airport will continue to be open for civilian flights, the chief minister said.
Restrictions on construction activities within the 200-metre radius of the Dabolim airport creates problems for the locals, he said, adding, “Singh has assured us that he will hold another meeting and consider our demand to decrease the buffer zone from 200 metres to 50 metres.”
-With PTI Input
