Following high drama on Thursday, when the office of Airports Authority of India (AAI) on Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International (SVPI) airport campus was sealed by the Ahmedabad Cantonment Board, AAI has agreed to pay 40% of the property tax dues that have been pending for over two years.
The Ahmedabad Cantonment Board sealed the AAI office on Thursday. However, it was re-opened around 10.30pm after officials agreed to make partial payment of the pending dues of Rs 1.73 crore within a week.
Well-placed sources confirmed that AAI has given written assurance to the Ahmedabad Cantonment Board that 40% of the dues, roughly Rs 69 lakh will be cleared in a week. The two organizations reportedly agreed that the remainder would be cleared by the AAI over the next three months.
Sources said AAI has seen its revenues slide as the airport remained closed for two months and even after it reopened, there are barely any passengers, given the general reluctance of people to travel.
The notice addressed to the airport director of SVPI airport, dated August 27, said that the ground, first, second and third floors of the AAI office building have been seized by the Cantonment Board and AAI has been given seven days to clear the dues besides paying recovery costs.
The dues have been pending for two years, from April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2020. It was also learned that the matter was pursued by the Ahmedabad Cantonment Board at least four times by issuing notices in the past, but they elicited no response or action from the airport authorities over a two-year period.
Attempts to contact A K Verma, SVPI director, elicited no response.
