Hyderabad: As Visakhapatnam’s swanky Bhogapuram international airport, the largest in Andhra Pradesh, gets ready for inauguration in June, the Naidu government has put back on tarmac a no-frills airport near Nellore in the south coast.
The Dagadarthi airport—planned about a decade back by N. Chandrababu Naidu in his previous term as a low-cost, greenfield project and for which around 1,350 acres were earmarked—was scrapped by his successor Jagan Mohan Reddy after he assumed charge in 2019.
The concession agreement with SCL-Turbo Consortium Private Limited was terminated as the developer could not achieve financial closure for the project.
Now, following revised approvals, site clearance from the Ministry of Civil Aviation headed by TDP MP K. Rammohan Naidu, the NDA-ruled state government has floated fresh global tenders for firms to develop the airport in PPP mode.
After the Naidu cabinet’s nod, the state government also issued orders earlier this month allowing the AP Airports Development Corporation Limited (APADCL) to acquire 418 acres at Damavaram village in Nellore district for the airport, offering a compensation of Rs 13 lakh per acre to farmer land owners.
Speaking to ThePrint, Praveen Adhithya, Managing Director, A.P. Airports Development Corporation Limited said that while the state government will provide the land—1,333 acres—the selected private developer will construct the airport and support infrastructure.
As per the Techno-Economic Feasibility Report (TEFR), the recommended tenure is 45 years, with direct extension of 15 years subject to compliance as per the concessionaire agreement based on optimum returns for the concessionaire.
The Dagadarthi airport is planned in four phases, with the first one to come into operation by early 2029. The projected passenger traffic is 3.7 lakh and cargo of 1,900 tonnes in the first year of operations, expected to shoot up to about 95 lakh passengers and 32,914 tonnes cargo in the 45th year, that is, end of Phase-3.
“Of the 1,333 acres, 582.5 acres will be for airside development, that is, airport operations, while 726 acres are marked for cityside (commercial) development; approach roads, etc., will take the rest 24 acres,” Adhithya said.
“The project’s long-term viability is closely linked to the monetisation of the city-side commercial land, which is larger than the airside area and forms a key revenue driver,” officials said.
The estimated capital expenditure in the first 15 years is over Rs 1,130 crore.
The design will be Aerodrome 4C, with a 2,750×45 m runway where medium sized A320 type aircraft can land and take off. The terminal building will be 5,510 sqm initially, and expand to 1,47,316 sqm by Phase-4.
The airport master plan also includes provisioned land for a future cargo facility, to be developed as cargo traffic and regional business activity hub.
Himanshu Shukla, collector, Nellore, highlights the airport’s locational advantage—falling under the Visakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC), alongside the Kolkata-Chennai highway, and close to the soon-to-be-inaugurated Ramayapatnam sea port.
While Ramayapatnam port is an hour away, the Krishnapatnam port is about 90 minutes from Dagadarthi.
Also, BPCL’s proposed Rs 1 lakh crore greenfield refinery and petrochemical complex is coming up near Ramayapatnam port, whereas IFFCO Kisan SEZ is also being developed in the same Nellore district.
“Given the massive industrial development around, Dagadarthi has all the potential to become a major cargo hub, while also serving passengers from Nellore and surroundings with air connectivity to New Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Visakhapatnam, etc.,” Shukla told ThePrint.
Once operational, Dagadarthi will be the eighth airport in Andhra Pradesh.
The TDP-led AP government has also applied for yet another airport in the state, at Kuppam, CM Naidu’s assembly constituency. As per the Ministry of Civil Aviation, an application for grant of site clearance for development of a greenfield airport at Kuppam in Chittoor district was received in June 2025.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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