Seaplane, airstrip projects of Kerala hit a snag

Kerala’s ambitious seaplane and aviation projects appear to have hit turbulence once again, with the State reportedly dragging its feet on their implementation. Nearly two years ago, the government floated tenders inviting consultancy firms to conduct feasibility studies for initiating air services and building helipads in Bekal, Wayanad, and Idukki, along with a seaplane waterdrome in Kochi. However, the Transport department is yet to issue a work order for preparing the pre-feasibility report.

More recently, the State asked Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board Consultancy-Rail India Technical and Economic Service (KIIFCON–RITES), the joint venture selected through competitive bidding to carry out feasibility studies for airstrips and helipads, to expand the scope of work to include preparation of detailed project reports (DPRs) for five waterdromes at different locations in the State, in addition to the originally awarded works. In response, KIIFCON–RITES informed the government that such an expansion was not feasible, as the additional work could not be accommodated within the cost quoted in the bid.

This impasse has effectively stalled the project, with the government refraining from issuing the work order even for the previously awarded components. These included integrating nearly 100 existing helipads — both government and privately owned — across the State into an aviation network, including connectivity to Sabarimala, besides setting up airstrips in Kasaragod, Wayanad, and Idukki.

Last year, the Union government directed Kerala to submit DPRs for launching seaplane services from the Idukki, Malampuzha, Banasura Sagar, and Mattupetty/Chenkulam dam sites, as well as from Bekal. The directive followed the allocation of 48 seaplane routes, including several in Kerala, to various airlines under the Regional Connectivity Scheme –UDAN of the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation. Acting on this directive, the State altered the scope of the already awarded work. However, the project was subsequently stalled due to the untenable expansion of scope without a corresponding revision in cost.

Sources close to the State government told The Hindu that the government is now considering issuing the work order to KIIFCON–RITES for the originally awarded tasks, while floating a fresh tender for the seaplane project to select an agency for preparing the DPRs. However, officials cautioned that the process may take considerable time, given the sluggish pace of file movement within the Transport department.

At present, the five seaplane routes in Kerala have been allocated to IndiaOne Air, Maritime Energy Heli Air Services Pvt. Ltd. (MEHAIR), PHL, and SpiceJet.