Now Reading: MP aviation department asks Bhopal collector to find helipad sites
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MP aviation department asks Bhopal collector to find helipad sites
The Madhya Pradesh aviation department has asked Bhopal district administration to identify land for two helipads after failing to find suitable sites on its own. Additional chief secretary Sanjay Shukla has asked collector Priyank Mishra to help locate parcels near Pandit Khusilal Ayurvedic Hospital and the Indian Institute of Forest Management.
The helipads are planned near the Chief Minister's House and the Mantralaya to ease traffic restrictions during the CM's cavalcade. Earlier attempts to build a rooftop helipad at Satpura Bhawan were rejected by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. The state is also expecting delivery of a new Airbus helicopter in the coming months.
Collector Mishra told Free Press that revenue officers are surveying land and hope to identify suitable sites soon. Previous options such as land between Mantralaya and Vallabh Bhawan were ruled out due to heavy tree cover.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Madhya Pradesh's plan for two helipads near the Chief Minister's residence and the secretariat dates back years, but has repeatedly hit roadblocks from tree cover, land availability, and regulatory hurdles. The earlier attempt for a rooftop helipad at Satpura Bhawan was rejected by the DGCA, likely on safety grounds given building height and approach path constraints. For a state already spending on a new Airbus helicopter, finding a suitable landing site near the seat of power is essential to avoid traffic disruptions during the CM's movement, Bhopal roads already see frequent diversions for VVIP convoys. The real constraint is land: both proposed areas are either forested or built-up, and acquiring government land in a capital city for a single-use facility is politically and administratively slow. The next milestone to watch is whether the collector identifies a site before the Airbus delivery in the coming months.
Source: freepressjournal.in
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