Travellers arriving at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai these days face crowds and chaos of the like that you would expect only at local railway and bus stations.
The cause of the chaos is the construction of a 'canopy' for the waiting relatives of passengers.
"They have been constructing this canopy since last month and there is complete chaos every time an international flight lands," a tea vendor near the airport complained.
There is only one monitor displaying the timings of international flights and it is not visible till the visitors reach the gate of the arrival lounge. As a result, passengers leaving after customs clearance have to struggle through the bystanders jostling around trying to see the monitor.
"It feels like we are coming out of a local train in Mumbai," an angry Mohan Patil, who arrived on a British Airways flight, said. Jyotsana Patil, his wife, added, "The least the government can do is provide us some comfort after the tiring flights."
Sanjay Deshmukh, who came from Pune to receive his sister at the airport, was shocked. "I thought only Mumbai trains are crowded, but now I feel the airport is worse. At railway platforms, I can see the indicators very clearly from a distance, but here I have to push so many people just to see the timing of the arriving flight," he said.
Taxi driver Brijmohan Mishra also complained about the construction work. "It is disturbing a lot of taxi drivers, as they have to take a longer route to reach the city. No one knows what is being constructed at the site. The least the government can do is put a board mentioning what's being erected here," he said.
The canopy, when ready, will be a comfort to the relatives of passengers as there is no shade or seating arrangement near the arrival lounge for them now. But thanks to the slow pace of work, it will take at least four months. "We are trying to complete the construction by March 31," an Airports Authority of India official said.
But Airport Director Sudhir Kumar said he will have to check the files to know the date of completion. "I am not aware of the deadline. But this discomfort is a temporary one. It will benefit passengers and their relatives in the future," he said.
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