The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said that although an expansion of the Jaffna International Airport at Palaly is necessary, the extent of land required for the expansion has not yet been decided.

CAA Director – Air Navigation Services and Spokesperson Thilina Sri Warnasinghe, speaking to The Daily Morning, said yesterday (27) that the airport currently had only basic approaches and the facilities required for aircraft, and that any expansion beyond this would require land acquisition. “Definitely, there is no question about it. You have to do an expansion. As of now also, there are only basic approaches and all those things required for aircraft available at the airport. For anything to be expanded beyond this, acquisition is required,” he said.

However, Warnasinghe also said that Airport and Aviation Services Limited had not yet technically indicated any expansion and therefore, the amount of land required is still unclear. “They have not yet indicated whether they are going to expand or not. It all depends on the nature of the expansion,” he noted. “The Government-owned land would first have to be properly demarcated and surveyed before any further land is considered for acquisition”. 

He added that any acquisition would be carried out according to Government standards and that compensation would be paid accordingly. “Land belonging to the CAA has been paid for and all compensation and all those things have been done and cleared. It has been for a long time,” he said. 

According to Warnasinghe, the remaining land belonged to the Defence Ministry. “According to information I received, the Ministry has some land which is of a private nature, which has been acquired either during the war or at another time. I don’t know whether they have paid anything for that land,” he said. Meanwhile, attempts to contact the Deputy Civil Aviation Minister for comment proved futile.

Ministry Spokesperson, Brigadier Franklin Joseph said that the matter would have to be checked with the Ministry’s Parliamentary Affairs branch. “There has been talk about expanding it, but I don’t know what decisions have been taken regarding the properties. We have a Parliamentary Affairs branch in the Ministry, and they would have to check with them,” he said.

The Government is proposing to acquire land in Valikamam North for the expansion of the Palaly/Jaffna International Airport, while residents in areas including Myliddy have reportedly received notices regarding land earmarked for the proposed expansion. Allegations have been made by Opposition Parliamentarian Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam that around 3,000 acres could be acquired for airport development.