Delhi Is Among India's PPP Airports

The Indian government has confirmed that 14 airports across the country are currently being operated under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, with several more lined up for leasing under the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP). The move has significantly contributed to revenue generation while reducing the financial burden on the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

The Ministry of Civil Aviation stated that eight brownfield airports, previously owned by AAI, have been leased out for operations, management, and development. These include Delhi, Mumbai (Maharashtra), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Jaipur (Rajasthan), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Guwahati (Assam), Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala), and Mangaluru (Karnataka). Additionally, six greenfield airports—Bengaluru (Karnataka), Hyderabad (Telangana), Cochin and Kannur (Kerala), Durgapur (West Bengal), and Mopa (Goa)—have been developed under the PPP model by their respective state governments.

As part of the NMP, the government has identified 25 airports, including Jodhpur and Udaipur in Rajasthan, for leasing between 2022 and 2025. At present, Jaipur remains the only airport in Rajasthan under PPP operations.

According to the government, the shift to the PPP model has been financially beneficial for AAI. Under the revenue-sharing and Per Passenger Fee (PPF) arrangements, private concessionaires have paid approximately ₹37,797 crore from Delhi and Mumbai airports alone until the financial year 2023-24. Additionally, six other PPP-operated AAI airports have contributed around ₹2,560 crore through PPF by January 2024. These private players have also paid an upfront amount of ₹5,260 crore towards capital expenditure initially incurred by AAI before transitioning to PPP.

The government asserts that these agreements have not only generated substantial revenue but have also freed AAI from direct operational expenditures. This allows the authority to focus on infrastructure development and airport upgrades nationwide.