PM Modi to inaugurate Sikkim’s first airport tomorrow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Pakyong airport, the first in the north-eastern state of Sikkim on Monday.

The prime minister will leave for the Himalayan state after launching the Centre's flagship Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPM) from Jharkhand capital Ranchi on Sunday.

"After the programme in Jharkhand I will leave for Sikkim. In Sikkim, I will be inaugurating the Pakyong Airport tomorrow, which will improve connectivity and benefit the people of Sikkim," Modi tweeted on Sunday.

The Pakyong Airport is a Greenfield airport 30-km from Gangtok. It is the 100th operational airport in the country. The airport has been conceived at a budget of Rs 605.59 crore. The runway of the airport, built on the mountainous terrain, is around 1.7 kilometres long and 30 metres wide, reports say. A taxiway, an apron, a fire station and a traffic control tower have also been built.