Authorities at the Srinagar International Airport have initiated a structural safety audit of all buildings on its premises. This preventive measure comes days after a roof collapsed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Airport, killing one person and injuring eight others, officials told Kashmir News Observer (KNO) on Saturday.
The development follows an order by Union Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, directing airports across the country to conduct a “structural preliminary inspection” promptly. Kinjarapu stated that his ministry had adopted “proactive measures” after the mishap at Delhi Airport’s Terminal 1 amid heavy rains.
Director of Srinagar Airport, Javed Anjum, informed KNO that the airport authority had partnered with the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar to assist in the structural safety audit mandated by the minister.
“We will conduct a detailed structural audit in consultation with experts from NIT Srinagar and submit a report to the ministry as soon as possible,” he said.
Anjum emphasized that the engineering team at Srinagar Airport conducts regular inspections of all structures as a preventive measure, ensuring they are intact and without faults.
He mentioned that the main buildings of the airport were constructed under the guidance of experts from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and NIT Srinagar. “Everything, including all designs, was thoroughly checked and rectified by experts before proceeding with the construction,” he said.
Anjum noted that construction at Delhi Airport was handled by a private agency, whereas the government oversees operations at Srinagar Airport. “In the government sector, we execute major and sensitive works under foolproof planning, reducing the chances of mishaps like the one at Delhi Airport,” he said.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) manages more than 100 airports nationwide, including Kozhikode Airport. However, major airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad are managed by private companies.
On Friday, a 45-year-old cab driver was killed and eight others were injured when a portion of a roof at IGI Airport’s Terminal 1 collapsed during heavy rain. Similarly, a canopy outside Rajkot airport terminal in Gujarat collapsed due to heavy rain on Saturday, a day after the Delhi incident
