• Source:JND
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The Shivamogga airport is all set to be operational on Thursday as the first domestic flight from Bengaluru to Shivamogga, a crucial town in central Karnataka, will land at the newly launched Kuvempu Airport on August 31. The airport, named after the renowned Kannada poet, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February.

The flight, operated by Indigo, will depart from Kempe Gowda International Airport at 9.50 am and arrive at Shivamogga Airport at 11.05 am. Among the passengers will be state ministers MB Patil and Madhu Bangarappa, former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, MP BY Raghavendra and other public representatives from the Malnad region.

Karnataka Infrastructure Development Minister MB Patil said that the flight service has received a positive response, with tickets booked in advance for the next three weeks.

Shivamogga Airport is the first airport in Karnataka to be run by the state government. It is also the ninth domestic airport in the state, which has two international airports in Bengaluru and Mangaluru. Indigo has said that Shivamogga is its sixth destination in Karnataka after Bengaluru, Mysore, Mangaluru, Hubballi, Belagavi and that the direct flight will improve intrastate connectivity and access to other domestic and international destinations via Bengaluru.

The airport was built at a cost of around Rs 600 crores, out of which Rs 449 crores were spent on the infrastructure and the rest on land acquisition. It was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February on the occasion of the 80th birthday of former Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa.