Date:10/12/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/10/stories/2008121053700300.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Cargo Village inaugurated

Staff Reporter

‘First of its kind’ facility at an airport

The village will house 120 freight operators
It was built with Rs. 12-crore investment

BANGALORE: The Cargo Village, claimed to be the first of its kind in the country, was inaugurated at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIA).

The village will house 120 freight forwarders and 80 custom house agents and will be ready for occupation on January 1, 2009.

Spread over 11 acres, the new facility is expected to strengthen Bangalore’s position as a trade and commercial hub while ensuring quick clearance of import and export consignments from the cargo terminals at the airport, a release from Bangalore International Airport Ltd. (BIAL) said.

The facility, which took 10 months to be completed, has been built with an investment of Rs. 12 crore.

“Cargo development is a key focus of BIAL’s core business strategy. With the inauguration of the village, we will be able to further enhance existing cargo operations for Bangalore,” BIAL Chief Executive Officer Albert Brunner, said in a release.

He said: “Our airport has witnessed both a quantitative increase in terms of export facility area and qualitative improvement in terms of storage and handling capabilities to promote the outflow of goods. The facility will generate employment opportunities and create a better working environment for its occupants.”

The Cargo Village has essential facilities at the warehouse such as banks, conference rooms, training rooms, business centre, help desk and staff canteen . It can also accommodate nearly 80 trucks.

The airport, a release said, has handled 70,905 tonnes of cargo since its commercial launch on May 24, 2008 whereas the annual cargo requirement stands at 1.7 lakh tonnes.

Cargo terminals

The airport has two operational cargo terminals — one (built and operated by Menzies Aviation Bobba Pvt. Ltd.) with a capacity to handle 1.5 lakh tonnes of cargo and other (an Air India SATS joint venture consortium) with a capacity to handle 2 lakh tonnes of cargo.

Over 740 freighter flights (international and domestic) have operated from the airport since it began commercial operations. Of these, two new freighters — Expoair and Jett8 Cargo were introduced after the airport became functional. Today, the airport operates freighters to 10 destinations across India and overseas, the release said.

The Cargo Village was inaugurated by members of the executive management of BIAL and executive office members of Air Cargo Agents Association of India and Bangalore Custom House Agents Association Limited.

Bengaluru International Airport’s current facilities include two operational cargo terminals - built and operated by Menzies Aviation Bobba Pvt Ltd and Air India SATS Joint Venture consortium.