Protest against handing over of Guwahati airport to Adani Group

Ground Report | New Delhi: Protest against handing; The week-long mass signature campaign launched to demand the withdrawal of the decision to hand over the Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Assam's Borjhar to the Adani Group ended on Saturday.

As part of this mass signature campaign, over 500 people signed the letter protesting the government's decision to hand over the airport to a private company, NDTV reported.

This protest campaign was started on 9 August. Several activists of the Asom Jatiya Parishad (AJP), who were opposing this decision of the central government, were taken into custody by the police on 11 August. However, these protesters were later released.

Protest against handing

AJP President Lurinjyoti Gogoi said that this is the beginning of a massive awareness campaign launched by the party. "The party will continue to oppose the BJP's move to hand over the country's profitable enterprises to big private companies," Gogoi said.

The central government had decided to hand over the Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport to the Adani Group for a period of fifty years. From October, the private company will take over the operation, development, and management of the airport. The Adani group took over the surveillance of the airport on August 9.

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"Before officially assuming the responsibility, the Adani Group had reportedly directed airport employees to vacate their residences and businessmen to close their shops outside the airport premises," he said. The Asom Jatiya Parishad has been opposing it since the airport was handed over to the Adani group. Earlier, a memorandum was sent to the Central Government and the Airport Authority of India (AAI) requesting to reverse this decision.

AJP had launched a public signature campaign

The AJP had launched a public signature campaign on the matter on August 9 outside the airport premises but it was postponed that day due to public disruption. After this, approval was sought under the Covid-19 protocol, which was refused. AJP activists started collecting signatures on August 10 but the police took them into custody and questioned them till late in the evening. Lurinjyoti Gogoi led it on Saturday, the last day of the week-long campaign. About 100 leaders and workers participated in the signing ceremony.

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Gogoi said the airport is named after the popular Gopinath Bordoloi. It is one of the leading and most profitable airports. It will not be allowed to go into the hands of the private company at any cost. Gogoi and party general secretary Jagdish Bhuyan said in a separate press statement that the airport's state-of-the-art terminal was constructed at a cost of Rs 1,232 crore.

The AGP chief said it is clear that the Adani group has completed preparations for massive looting through the airport. The group has already started preparations to earn higher rates from ground handling and parking at the airport. Gogoi and Bhuyan said that supporting this decision is going against the people. (Protest against handing)

After a few days of peace along the Assam-Mizoram border, tension escalated on Saturday when unidentified miscreants bombed a government school in Assam's Hailakandi district. This has spread fear among the local people.

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