Kathmandu, April 3
Nepal’s only international airport in Kathmandu is shutting for 10 hours everyday from Wednesday as it has launched a runway upgrading programme.
Officials inform that the Tribhuvan International Airport will not operate flights from 10 pm to 8 am everyday for next three months. Earlier, the airport would close the services for only two hours everyday.
Baburam Paudel, Chief of the TIA Air Transport Capacity Enhancement Project, says the upgrading will be over within 90 days. Efforts will be made to complete it within 70 days, he maintains.
Minister of State for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Dhan Bahadur Budha launched the programme by offering a worship to gods and goddesses amidst a function on Wednesday morning.
This is the first time that the airport administration is removing the old blacktopping and putting the new one along the runway since its construction in 1975. The runway maintenance, however, would be carried out frequently at a small scale earlier.
Chinese government’s China National Agro Technology has been assigned for the project. The government will pay the company Rs 4.27 billion for the task.
