After a newspaper advertisement renaming the airport goes viral on social media, chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma clarifies that there is no such renaming on cards.
Speculations regarding the renaming of the airport
On Wednesday, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma says that there is no renaming of the airport on cards which dumps all the speculations surrounding the renaming of Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (LGBIA) after the Adani group of companies starts its observation of the airport.
In 2018, the central government leased out six Airport Authority India (AAI) airports to Adani Group which also includes LGBIA for developmental works.
According to the official order, the Adani group started its observation period on Monday at the LGBIA to develop and modernise the northeast’s main airport.
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False advertisement feeds into the speculations
The whole controversy about renaming the airport escalated after a snippet of a newspaper publication goes viral on social media, where the name of the airport is cited as Adani Guwahati International Airport Limited (AGIAL) instead of Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (LGBIA).
Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma says, “As long as I remain the chief minister of Assam and Narendra Modi is the Prime Minister of India, the name of the airport will always be after Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi. There is no need to create controversy around it.”
Moreover, the newspaper advertisement is that of an invitation that invites, “parties to participate in the e-tendering process for provisions of various non-aeronautical services at the airport”.
At the same time, All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) and opposition Congress and several others warn the government and ask them to refrain from renaming the airport which has been named after the state’s first chief minister.
