New Delhi: The second international airport for Bengaluru has not moved to the next stage because the Karnataka government is yet to submit a formal proposal to the Centre, the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation informed Parliament on Monday.
A question in Lok Sabha by Bengaluru Central MP P.C. Mohan, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said that while the AAI has done a pre-feasibility study of three shortlisted locations, the Union Government has not received the required proposal under the Greenfield Airports Policy.
"The Government of India has not received any proposal thereafter under the Greenfield Airports Policy from the Government of Karnataka or any airport developer for development of a second Greenfield Airport near Bengaluru," he said.
Three Sites Already Studied
The AAI has already completed preliminary feasibility studies at three shortlisted locations for the proposed airport. As of now, the Karnataka government had indicated that areas near Kanakapura Road and Kunigal Road were among the locations being studied for the project.
Following the AAI’s site inspections, Karnataka Industries Minister M.B. Patil had announced that the state government had floated a tender to appoint consultants for preparing a detailed feasibility and strategy report.
But according to the Centre, the next step can only begin after the Karnataka government or an authorised airport developer submits a formal proposal under the Greenfield Airports Policy.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has completed pre-feasibility studies for three sites for Bengaluru’s second airport and submitted the report to the Government of Karnataka. The Union Government has not received any proposal thereafter from the State Government. pic.twitter.com/QmSyOmaxrl
— P C Mohan (@PCMohanMP) July 27, 2026
Bengaluru Airport to expand
The Centre also updated Parliament on the expansion of Kempegowda International Airport (KIA).
According to the Civil Aviation Ministry, the airport currently has an annual passenger handling capacity of 51.5 million passengers per annum (MPPA).
The KIA has experienced an average of 1.23 lakh passengers a day in the current financial year (FY 2026-27) up to June 2026 as domestic and international travel continue to grow.
The airport will have 80 million passengers in 2030 to meet surging demand due to increasing passenger volume at the airport.
A major part of this expansion will be Terminal 2 - Phase 2, which will expand the terminal's capacity from 25 MPPA to 45 MPPA.
What is next?
The Centre clarified that the second airport project cannot proceed until a formal proposal is submitted under the Greenfield Airports Policy.
Once the proposal is received, it will undergo an evaluation and approval process before any decision is taken on granting clearance for the new airport.
The proposed second airport is of crucial importance for Bengaluru's long-term aviation needs in the face of increasing passenger traffic. But the project will be delayed pending the state government's own preparations and submission of its proposal to the Union Government.
