Jewar airport fined

The Noida international airport (NIA) in Jewar, which was to be operational by the end of September 2024, is now looking at a new deadline of April 2025, inviting a penalty of ₹21 crore from the Uttar Pradesh government for the delay, UP officials aware of the matter said.
“As per the legalities with the UP government, NIA should commence normal flight operations from September 30. The contract allows a grace period of 91 days for the airport operator for commencing flight operations in full swing. A delay of further four months will invite penalty,” an official close to the matter said.
NIA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG. At present, the carpeting work on the airport’s runway is complete, and the runway lights are set to be installed in about a month. “Work on the terminal building is being completed at various levels,” an airport official said.
As per the concession agreement, Yamuna International Airport Private Limited (YIAPL) — the operator of NIA — has been granted a 91-day grace period to complete the airport, under specific conditions, following which a fine of ₹10 lakh per day is to be imposed. The UP officials said that while NIA officials are in talks with the state government to get the penalty reduced, the chances seem to be negligible.
“As per the contract, the penalty will be effective from September 30. The chances of the penalty being waived off are negligible. However, dialogues with the government may lead to waiving off of the penalty for a couple of months or so,” an official said.
An NIA spokesperson did not comment on the penalty, but said that the body is working closely with the Uttar Pradesh government.
“Noida International Airport embodies the true spirit of a public-private partnership. From the very beginning, the government of Uttar Pradesh has been an avid supporter of this project. We have forged a strong partnership with them, united by a common goal: to create a world-class airport for Uttar Pradesh and Delhi NCR. Together, we are working hand in hand to bring this vision to life,” the spokesperson said.
Separately, Noida International Airport Ltd (NIAL), the UP government’s special purpose vehicle for the project, issued a notice to YIAPL for extending the completion timeline without consulting the government body.
When asked about the cause of delay in making the airport operational, an official from NIA, requesting anonymity, said, “The delay is due to various reasons. However, one of the biggest reasons is the delay in awarding the engineering procurement and construction (EPC) contract.”
YIAPL awarded the EPC contract of the airport to Tata Projects in June 2022.
The airport, in its first phase, will have one terminal building and one runway, with a passenger capacity of 12 million per year. After the completion of the fourth phase, the airport will have the capacity to manage 70 million passengers per year.
“While the air traffic control (ATC) building is being completed, the airport operator has handed over a small part for AAI (Airports Authority of India) vendors to work in parallel,” the NIA official quoted above said.
YIAPL said that it aims to apply for an aerodrome licence in December after completing critical validation flights in the coming weeks.