Panaji, July 26 (TNN): In a bid to attract tourists and increase revenue, Goa will host an Aero Defence Expo every year, a proposal that has the backing of defence minister Manohar Parrikar and chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar.
"We have given the green signal for this annual event... it is usually held in Bengaluru," Parsekar told STOI. In the Karnataka capital city the event is a biennial show.
The ambitious idea could see fighter aircraft like F-16s, Su-30MKIs, C-17 Globemaster 3, Chinook, Apache, MK-132 Typhoon demonstrating their abilities at Naqueri-Betul in Quepem taluka.
Following a meeting of a few Goa industrial development corporation officials on Friday, the corporation gave in-principle approval to allocate GIDC's 150 acres of land in the village, acquired three years ago for industrial purposes, to the defence ministry to organize the Defexpo and Aero India shows.
The clearance was given after Parrikar wrote to the state government asking for the presently-vacant land, said sources, adding that the proposal requires a full-scale runway for both military and commercial aircraft.
"We have to try and build the entire infrastructure that they require," Parsekar told STOI.
Though the modalities are yet to be worked out, the state government expects to host the next Defexpo and Aero India shows in February 2016—seven months away.
This optimism is not shared by the bureaucracy. "Nothing has been decided and talks are still in the primitive stage," a senior government official said. "The undersecretary of industries has written to the defence ministry for further discussions."
Before the proposal can go ahead, the state government and defence ministry have to also work out a proper revenue sharing model and proper utilization of land resources. The ball is now in the defence ministry's court.
Given GIDC's track record, doubts remain whether the site will be ready by February. Sources indicated that the show could also be a one-time event. Both the government and local industry have repeatedly cited lack of land as a major hurdle for industrial growth in the state.