Will planes actually fly from Jewar Airport or is crisis set to get worse?

The Jewar Airport in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh has been hit by one crisis after another over the years. From government changes to land acquisition and other problems, Jewar Aiprort has been lurching from one crisis to another. However, things may well be on the mend now and the project could well be inching closer to reality. Farmers, whose lands are being acquired, from this region are gradually coming to terms with the state government’s terms. For this ambitious project, expected to be ready by 2022, so far 2335 farmers have reportedly given their consent to give up 916 hectares of land. This land tract forms 75 per cent of the area needed.
 
According to reports, the total land requirement for the first phase is nearly 1334 hectares of land, of which the government has merely 116 hectare, Therefore, for the remaining 1220 hectare, the district administration and local MLA Dhirendra Singh have been striving hard to persuade the farmers to give up their lands. 
 
Due to this effort, as many as 118 land owners in the first week of this month agreed for acquisition of their land for the proposed international airport in Jewar. This took to 1,688 the number of villagers who agreed to give their consent, Jewar MLA Dhirendra Singh had told PTI, after interacting with farmers and landowners, at Dayanatpur and Ranhera villages, whose land is to be acquired for the project in Gautam Buddh Nagar district.
 
Notably, a total of 5,000 hectares of land has to be acquired for the airport, which is estimated to cost around Rs 20,000 crore. The airport is likely to be operational by 2022-23, if the land is acquired. Over 1,300 hectare is to be acquired from five villages - Rohi, Parohi, Dayanatpur, Ranhera and Kishorpur - during the first phase of the project. 
 
The Jewar MLA told PTI that he has been touring the region and meeting locals, urging them to give consent for land acquisition, amid doubts among villagers over the compensation amount, related benefits and the resettlement policy.
 
The MLA reportedly said, "Everyone wants to have a big project in his area, so that young people can get employment and the quality of life of the locals can be improved," adding "Now after several years, this opportunity has knocked the doors of Jewar, which we can grab to not only benefit ourselves but also the people of other neighbouring districts." 
 
About the rehabilitation policy for affected people, he reportedly said that efforts are being made to ensure they are resettled in villages which will be known by their former name, adding "Efforts are also being made to ensure their rehabilitation in developed areas along with employment opportunities for the youth." 
 
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Earlier, the Civil Aviation department had fixed the August 31 as the deadline for seeking the farmers' consent, but this date was later revised to September 6. The district administration has reportedly sought more time as so far the consent has facilitated merely 67% of the land required for the project.