Bengaluru’s Flight of Fancy Lands at Kempegowda Airport’s T2: Easy for Travel & On the Eyes Too | Here’s How

From ease of travel to easy on the eye and nature, Terminal 2 (T2) of the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, is all about the experience.

Built at a cost of Rs 5,000 crore, T2 aims for environmental sustainability and green living and is expected to double the passenger handling capacity of the airport to 5-6 crore passengers per annum, from the current capacity of about 2.5 crore.

PM Modi also unveiled the 108-ft-tall statue of the city’s founder Nadaprabhu Kempegowda, which has been installed at the Kempegowda International Airport. The PM’s visit is also politically significant for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka, with just about five months for the Assembly polls, as the saffron party hopes to return to power, and has set a target of winning 150 of the 224 seats.

ROBOTS AT YOUR SERVICE

News18 has earlier reported that at the new terminal, one can expect to see the use of AI and robotics. The Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has launched and deployed ‘Temi’, a robot assistant in terminal 1, as part of a pilot project to assist passengers. Ten such robots that have been assigned floors and zones assist passengers with directions to the boarding gates, facilities like drinking water and washrooms, shopping zones, and baggage claim. This will also become a feature at T2, sources told News18 earlier.

While PM Modi inaugurated the phase 1, phase 2, which is currently in progress, is expected to be completed in a couple of years and will serve an additional 20 million passengers per annum.

“T2 will have a total built-up area of 2.55 lakh square metres with arrivals being planned on the ground floor and departures via the first floor,? said BIAL. Another 4.41 lakh square metres will be added to this new terminal during the second phase.

Experts have said that the Bengaluru airport will soon overtake Mumbai to become India’s second busiest airport after Delhi with this new development. Bengaluru’s airport has not only bounced back in terms of footfall since air travel opened up after the pandemic, but also saw 102% growth in passenger traffic and an 85% growth in international travel last month, according to a report shared by BIAL. In 2021, the airport catered to 6.61 million passengers in October. During the same period this year, the airport saw 16.30 million passengers landing in KIA, according to the statistics shared by the officials.

TERMINAL IN A GARDEN, NAvRASA IN ARTWORKS, 22 ENTRY, EXIT GATES

Based on the sustainability initiatives, T2 will be the largest terminal in the world to get pre-certified platinum rating by US GBC (green building council) prior to commencing operations.

The theme of ?Navrasa? unites all the commissioned artworks for T2. The artworks reflect the heritage and culture of Karnataka as well as the broader Indian ethos. Overall, the design and architecture of T2 have been influenced by four guiding principles: Terminal in a garden, sustainability, technology and art and culture.

A lagoon with a big outdoor garden around it, multi-modal transport hub, including Namma Metro, solar panels on the roof, elevated walkways and green seating areas are the highlights of the new terminal, according to BIAL. The ticket and check-in counters are modernised to provide both seamless and quicker transfer for the passengers. Terminal in a Garden will have 22 entry and exit gates, and nine baggage claim belts have been built in it.

The passenger experience is meant to be a “walk in the garden". Passengers will travel through 10,000+ sq m of green walls, hanging gardens and outdoor gardens and these gardens have been made in India using indigenous technology.

A recent video shared by Karnataka minister Dr K Sudhakar called it a “reflection of the ethos of Bengaluru as the garden city of India?.

‘STATUE OF PROSPERITY’

Called the ‘Statue of Prosperity’, the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda statue has been built to commemorate the contribution of Kempegowda towards the growth of Bengaluru.

?A matter of pride for us that the Statue of Prosperity is the first and tallest bronze statue of a founder of a city as per World Book of Records. An apt tribute to Bengaluru?s founder Kempegowda. Standing at 108 ft, it symbolises his vision of a Global City,? Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai tweeted along with a certificate from ?World Book of Records? on Wednesday.

It weighs 220 tonnes and has a sword weighing 4 tonnes. The project has a heritage theme park in an area covering 23 acres dedicated to the 16th century chieftain, together costing about Rs 84 crore.

Kempegowda, a feudatory ruler under the erstwhile Vijayanagara Empire, founded Bengaluru in 1537. He is revered, especially by the Vokkaliga community that is dominant in Old Mysuru and other parts of southern Karnataka. Renowned sculptor and Padma Bhushan awardee Ram Vanji Sutar has designed the statue. Sutar had built the ?Statue of Unity? in Gujarat and the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Bengaluru?s Vidhana Soudha. Before the unveiling, ?Mruthike? (sacred mud) was collected from over 22,000 locations across the state.

‘AIRPORT CITY’

Apart from T2, a multi-billion dollar ‘Airport City’, a smart city and business hub has been planned within the premises of KIA. With close to 500 acres, this futuristic city will function at multiple levels. A smart village that will facilitate retail, dining and entertainment, a world-class business park that will further facilitate building Bengaluru’s core strength — technology, artificial intelligence, robotics, manufacturing, computing, etc, — a state-of-the-art central kitchen that will cater to local as well as international cuisines, a world-class hotel with around 775 rooms are also part of the project infrastructure.

Just like the Quad at KIA, a designated shopping and entertainment zone at the present airport that also plays host to musical concerts, theatre, etc, a similar concert arena for outdoor events, but on a much more massive scale, is also in the works. This smart-airport city will also build a transportation hub connecting it to Bengaluru city via metro, buses, and suburban rail, News18 had reported.

AIRBUS A380

The world’s largest passenger plane Airbus A380 operated by Emirates arrived at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru last month. Bengaluru became the first southern city in the country where services of the world’s largest passenger aircraft is launched.

Satyaki Raghunath, Chief Strategy and Development officer at BIAL, said that Bengaluru has become the first city in southern India to be served by Emirates flagship A380 services.

The arrival of this wide-body aircraft shows the operational capability and rising passenger demand at Bengaluru airport.

The enhanced premium experience that the new A380 service brings to the Dubai-Bengaluru route will not only meet the strong travel demand but also help to stimulate traffic between the two markets, Raghunath added.

Currently, Emirates operates A380 to more than 30 destinations across the globe. The airbus is loved for its extra legroom. The flight has a premium economy. The other features include a shower spa and an onboard lounge. Business class cabins provide superior levels of comfort and privacy and spacious seats in economy class.

With PTI Inputs

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