The court said that the centre was free to explore the possibility of reviving the airstrip.(File)
The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to direct the central government to build an airport in the Mayurbhanj district of Orissa by reviving an airstrip constructed there in the year 1940.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Satish Chandra said that the construction of an airport is a policy decision that has to be taken by the central government while keeping in mind several factors.
"It is the pure domain of the government of India as well as the Airport Authority of India to construct an airport keeping in view the flow of the traffic and other relevant factors," said the bench also comprising Justice Subramonium Prasad.
The petitioner, a practicing advocate, said that during the British regime in 1940, an airstrip was constituted at Rasgovindpur block, Mayurbhanj in Orissa but after the Second World War was over, no steps were taken to make it functional.
He emphasised that the locality needed an airport and therefore the central government should be directed to make the airstrip functional.
The court refused to grant any relief to the petitioner but said that The court said that the centre was free to explore the possibility of reviving the airstrip on its own.
"It is a genuine concern but it is for the Government of India to decide. If it is a necessity, they will do it," the court remarked.
"It is purely a policy matter and a decision has to be taken by the Government of India keeping in view various factors. In the considered opinion of this court, no such writ can be issued directing the government of India in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case to construct the airport or revive the airstrip which was constructed in 1940," the court ordered.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)