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Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, January 11
Dissatisfied with the Railway’s inability to respond to a query on the possibility of arranging extra coaches or running special trains between Chandigarh and Delhi from February 12 to 26 following the closure of the Chandigarh airport for runway repair, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today asked Ambala Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) to appear.
The order by Division Bench of Justice AK Mittal and Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal came after senior advocate Puneet Jindal, representing the Railways, submitted that he has not been able to get assistance from the authorities regarding a decision to run additional Shatabdi or additional coaches/running of additional trains on the Chandigarh-Delhi route during the period when the airport would remain closed completely.
Taking a note of the submission, the Bench ordered, “It is appropriate to direct the DRM, Ambala Cantonment, to remain present in person in the court on January 18”.
During the previous date of hearing in a petition on taking the Chandigarh international airport to new heights by improving infrastructure, introducing better facilities and starting more flights, the High Court had put a query for preventing inconvenience to passengers travelling between the UT and the national capital by international and other flights.
The Bench, during the course of hearing, also impleaded the railway authorities as party in the case.
The airport authorities have already made it clear that no civil and military flight will operate from Chandigarh following runway resurfacing work by the Indian Air Force from February 12 to 26. The authorities have also claimed that the runway length was being extended from the present 9,000 ft to 10,400 ft to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft such as Boeing 777, 787 and 747 for facilitating long haul flights from Chandigarh to destinations in Europe, USA, Canada and the UK.
The Mohali Industries Association had earlier moved the High Court seeking directions to the Union of India to submit a status report on recarpeting and upgradation of the runway. The developments took place during the hearing of a petition filed by the association against non-operation of the airport.