The airport will be constructed near the national highway connecting Ahmedabad, Rajkot (Representational)
Highlights
- Reliance Infrastructure won the contract over nine other bidders
- The company said its bid for the project was the lowest
- Work has to be completed in 30 months, according to the company's release
Anil Ambani's Reliance Infrastructure has bagged a contract worth Rs 648 crore for a new greenfield airport in Gujarat. The airport will be built at Hirasar in Rajkot, the company said in a press statement today.
Reliance Infrastructure won the contract over nine other bidders, including L&T, Afcons, Dilip Buildcon and Gayatri Projects. The company said it had achieved the highest technical score of 92.2 per cent and its bid was the lowest.
The airport will be constructed near the national highway connecting Ahmedabad and Rajkot and nearly 36 km from the Rajkot airport.
Over time, says Reliance Infrastructure, the airport is expected to tackle the spillover traffic from Ahmedabad.
Anil Ambani's company will be involved in designing, engineering, the construction of runways, taxiways, apron, a fire station and the testing and commissioning of an instrument lighting system.
The work has to be completed in 30 months, according to the company's release.
The company has landed the airport contract at a time another Anil Ambani company, Reliance Defence, is still caught in the Rafale controversy.
The opposition accuses the government of signing an overpriced deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets only to help Reliance Defence, which has hardly any experience in plane-making, score an offset contract with Rafale-maker Dassault.
The allegations have been strongly denied by the government, Anil Ambani and Dassault.
Officials dismissed any controversy over the airport contract because Reliance Infrastructure does have experience in airports. It has a significant presence in Maharashtra and runs several brownfield airports or existing ones that have been upgraded.
Disclaimer: NDTV has been sued for 10,000 crores by Anil Ambani's Reliance Group for its coverage of the Rafale deal