NEW DELHI: The operator of the Indian capital’s international airport, majority owned by GMR Airports, is suing the government for allowing commercial flights from a nearby defence aerodrome, flagging financial risks, legal papers showed.

The airport in Delhi is one of India’s busiest, with about 73.6 million passengers last year, although it made a loss of $21 million because of higher government fees. As more and more Indians fly, airports are a lucrative business for the likes of GMR and billionaire Gautam Adani who also operates in the sector.

The Delhi airport will become “economically and financially unviable”, after the government permitted commercial flights from the airbase, DIAL said in the March 10 lawsuit.

In the lawsuit, DIAL told the Delhi High Court that the government had breached aviation rules barring a new airport within an aerial distance of 150 km of an existing one, unless there was passenger demand.

The Hindon Airport operates over 120 flights weekly, India’s Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court on Monday as the judge asked the government to file written responses to DIAL’s plea.

Published in Dawn, March 18th, 2025