Batticaloa Airport will soon be developed as a fully equipped domestic airport, said Minister of Tourism, Hon.Prasanna Ranatunga.The Minister who visited the airport this morning said that the Batticaloa Airport should be developed as an attractive mode of transport for tourists while developing the Eastern Province as a tourist destination.

The Batticaloa Airport, which was established in 1958 under the Department of Aviation, was assigned to the Air Force in 1983.During the last Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government (2012), the runway of the Batticaloa Airport was upgraded and started functioning as a domestic airport. The Batticaloa airport handled 3980 passengers in the year 2018, 3373 in 2019 and due to the Corona pandemic, it was declined to 723 passengers in 2020.The airport operated 1180 flights in 2018, 864 in 2019 and 174 in 2020.The airport has a 1368 meters long, 30 meters width runway in an area extent of 348 acres. The airport can handle up to 60 passengers with its facilities at present.

Speaking further, Minister of Tourism, Hon.Prasanna Ranatunga said, “We need the Batticaloa Airport in developing the tourism industry in the Eastern Province and therefore the Batticaloa Airport should be developed to suit the tourism industry. Although, the Airport has been gazetted as an international airport for many years, it has not developed to that level.  At least the facilities required for domestic flights have not been developed.  Over the next two years, the airport will be upgraded with the necessary facilities for domestic flights˜.

He instructed the officials to prepare a suitable plan for this purpose and to list the basic facilities required for operations and to discuss those with the relevant officials and necessary steps will be taken accordingly.

—We are creating an environment where tourists who come to the Eastern Province spend most of their days in the Eastern Province— said the Minister.

Responding to a question asked by a journalist regarding the appointment of Hon.Basil Rajapaksa, the Chief Organizer of the Sri Lanka People's Front, as a Member of Parliament, the Minister said, "The North and East were in the middle of the war at that time, it was Hon.Basil Rajapaksa who developed these provinces through projects such as Uthuru Wasanthaya, Nagenahira Navodaya etc. Nothing like that happened here during the period of good governance. Under our government, the whole country is treated equally. ”

The State Minister of Aviation and Export Zone Development, Hon.D.V. Chanaka, Hon. S. Viyalendran, Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism Mr.S. Hettiarachchi and Secretary to the State Ministry of Aviation and Export Zone Development, Mr. Madhava Devasurendra were also present on the occasion.