Team Goemkarponn
Panaji: A political storm has erupted over the future of Dabolim Airport, with the Goa Forward Party (GFP) threatening a statewide agitation if Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and Minister Mauvin Godinho fail to clarify their stand by next week.
GFP chief Vijai Sardesai launched a sharp attack on Godinho, terming it “shameful” to suggest that private airport operator GMR is pressurising the Centre to “kill” Dabolim. “It is not GMR, but the Union Defence Minister who is pushing the State to shut down Dabolim. Mauvin Godinho has failed to protect Dabolim Airport and should resign as the MLA of Dabolim,” Sardesai said.
He further claimed that the Union Defence Minister had warned Godinho against speaking further on the issue and alleged that the Indian Navy intends to take over the airport entirely. “I had raised this issue in the Assembly on January 16. A prominent businessman informed me that GMR and an Admiral have moved a file noting to keep Dabolim exclusively for the Navy post ‘Operation Sindoor’,” Sardesai stated.
Calling Dabolim “Goa’s symbolic airport,” the GFP chief demanded that the Chief Minister and Godinho publicly spell out their position. “If they fail to clarify by next week, we will launch a statewide agitation,” he warned.
Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao echoed concerns, saying apprehensions about Dabolim’s future appear to be coming true. He questioned why no firm assurance has been issued by the Defence Minister regarding the continuation of civil operations. Alemao alleged that Godinho has merely repeated earlier statements and urged Goans to remain alert. “Something is fishy about the developments surrounding the airport,” he remarked.
Amid the growing controversy, South Goa Member of Parliament has written to Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh seeking assurance on the continuity of Dabolim Airport as a civil enclave.
However, Minister Mauvin Godinho and MLA Jit Arolkar have maintained that both Dabolim International Airport and Manohar International Airport at Mopa must function in coordination for the overall progress of the State. They have emphasized the importance of a dual-airport model to support Goa’s tourism-driven economy.
The escalating war of words has revived long-standing concerns over Dabolim’s future, particularly in the backdrop of the operationalisation of Mopa airport and the strategic interests of the Navy, which controls Dabolim as a civil enclave.
