Modernisation of the Chennai and Kolkata airports will be delayed as the airports no longer figure on the list of facilities to be modernised through public-private partnership. At a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi some time back, it was decided that the airports in Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Guwahati would be upgraded through the PPP route during 2014-15. This is a deviation from the Manmohan Singh-led UPA Government´s decision to modernise six airports: Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Guwahati through the PPP route.
On the decision to keep Chennai and Kolkata airports off the list, a senior official said the Government is keen to develop airports in a holistic fashion once a civil aviation policy is in place.