NEW DELHI: A development of luxury hotels next to New Delhi's revamped $3 billion international airport has been hit by fears its close proximity to a runway makes it a security risk, highlighting teething problems in India's huge push to build infrastructure.
Delhi Police have called for a security review at what has been dubbed "Aerocity", a project run in partnership between the government and a private consortium.
The location of the 45-acre site just 200 metres from one of the runways at India's largest airport makes it a potential launch pad for militant attacks, police said.
Asia's third-largest economy is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into revamping its creaky infrastructure with world-class projects, without which it will struggle to maintain its status as one of the world's fastest-growing economies.
But such developments often stutter under implementation with teething problems ranging from land acquisition, erratic planning or throttling bureaucracy. Delhi airport offers a snapshot of India's infrastructure highs and lows.
Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), which contains a consortium led by the Indian firm GMR Infrastructure Limited, says it had received all necessary clearances beforehand to proceed with developing the land. GMR also disputes that the development is a security risk.
"They are very close to the runway," Deepak Mishra, Special Commissioner of Police (operations) at Delhi Police, said.
"They claim that they have got all kinds of clearances regarding the work," he said, adding "security vetting should have been done".
Asked about the dangers of the closeness to the runway, Mishra said it made the airport vulnerable to "any kind of sabotage. It may be some terrorists, it may some anti-nationals, it may be some weird character".
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Its gleaming new buildings and a high-speed rail link built by a consortium led by Reliance Infrastructure Ltd, won praise from many Indians as a sign of the country's ability to build projects that matched its rising economic status.
The airport is "a good advertisement for India", said DH Pai Panandikar, head of the think-tank RPG Foundation.
But part of a new terminal's roof, also built by GMR, collapsed after opening in 2009. The rail link, the first such in India, was delayed by months because it had not been given the necessary security clearance.
The underground line was meant to be ready for Delhi's Commonwealth Games last October, an event that was mired in rows over corruption allegations and huge project delays that put India's ability to deliver on infrastructure under scrutiny.
GMR was awarded the contract to develop and operate the airport in 2006, with an initial concession period of 30 years.
Such contracts are typical of the government's drive to plug India's huge infrastructure holes with a thriving private sector taking on a big chunk of the financial burden. Real estate concessions are often given to make a project more viable for private investors. The first hotel is set to open next March.
"Every clearance was taken," said Arun Bhagat, a spokesman for GMR. Bhagat disputed the figure given by police as to the proximity of the commercial development to the runway. Police have given a figure of less than 200 metres, while Bhagat said it was "many times that" but declined to give a precise figure.
"You can say it's in the vicinity of the airport but it's not bang there," he said. "As far as we're concerned, we know that we've complied with everything that was needed to be done."
Delhi police says it has written to the DIAL developers and has also contacted the home ministry to step in.
Mishra declined to give details on what could be done to beef up security at the site, saying he did not wish to prejudge the outcome of a review that would take place within weeks. He did, however, rule out shifting the site elsewhere.
Delhi Police have called for a security review at what has been dubbed "Aerocity", a project run in partnership between the government and a private consortium.
The location of the 45-acre site just 200 metres from one of the runways at India's largest airport makes it a potential launch pad for militant attacks, police said.
Asia's third-largest economy is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into revamping its creaky infrastructure with world-class projects, without which it will struggle to maintain its status as one of the world's fastest-growing economies.
But such developments often stutter under implementation with teething problems ranging from land acquisition, erratic planning or throttling bureaucracy. Delhi airport offers a snapshot of India's infrastructure highs and lows.
Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), which contains a consortium led by the Indian firm GMR Infrastructure Limited, says it had received all necessary clearances beforehand to proceed with developing the land. GMR also disputes that the development is a security risk.
"They are very close to the runway," Deepak Mishra, Special Commissioner of Police (operations) at Delhi Police, said.
"They claim that they have got all kinds of clearances regarding the work," he said, adding "security vetting should have been done".
Asked about the dangers of the closeness to the runway, Mishra said it made the airport vulnerable to "any kind of sabotage. It may be some terrorists, it may some anti-nationals, it may be some weird character".
ADVERTISING INDIA
Its gleaming new buildings and a high-speed rail link built by a consortium led by Reliance Infrastructure Ltd, won praise from many Indians as a sign of the country's ability to build projects that matched its rising economic status.
The airport is "a good advertisement for India", said DH Pai Panandikar, head of the think-tank RPG Foundation.
But part of a new terminal's roof, also built by GMR, collapsed after opening in 2009. The rail link, the first such in India, was delayed by months because it had not been given the necessary security clearance.
The underground line was meant to be ready for Delhi's Commonwealth Games last October, an event that was mired in rows over corruption allegations and huge project delays that put India's ability to deliver on infrastructure under scrutiny.
GMR was awarded the contract to develop and operate the airport in 2006, with an initial concession period of 30 years.
Such contracts are typical of the government's drive to plug India's huge infrastructure holes with a thriving private sector taking on a big chunk of the financial burden. Real estate concessions are often given to make a project more viable for private investors. The first hotel is set to open next March.
"Every clearance was taken," said Arun Bhagat, a spokesman for GMR. Bhagat disputed the figure given by police as to the proximity of the commercial development to the runway. Police have given a figure of less than 200 metres, while Bhagat said it was "many times that" but declined to give a precise figure.
"You can say it's in the vicinity of the airport but it's not bang there," he said. "As far as we're concerned, we know that we've complied with everything that was needed to be done."
Delhi police says it has written to the DIAL developers and has also contacted the home ministry to step in.
Mishra declined to give details on what could be done to beef up security at the site, saying he did not wish to prejudge the outcome of a review that would take place within weeks. He did, however, rule out shifting the site elsewhere.
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