CHENNAI: Passengers headed to board flights at Chennai airport can now catch a glimpse of the new terminal shaping up between the domestic and international terminals.
As the building has been completed and more than 70 % of its wavy roofing has been installed, Airports Authority of India (AAI) has started to install glass panels on the facade of the terminal.
Roofing work is over on the airside of the building and work has begun on the interior, including on the pillars and ceiling near the space were security check and boarding gates are coming up.
A crane is being used to haul technicians to fix the panels on the frontage of the building on the city-side.
A portion of the roof of the main building and the adjacent smaller building have been installed and the rest of the work will be completed in a few weeks, an official said.
The authorities have already installed huge vents for natural lighting on the roof, a facility which is not there in the existing terminals.
The new terminal, which can be used by domestic and international passengers, is designed to increase the passenger capacity of the airport from 21million passengers to 35million passengers per year.
The terminal is designed to have140 check-in counters, 38 self-service kiosks, 10 baggage conveyors,108 immigration counters.
The building was scheduled to be completed in April, but is now likely to be completed by the end of the year.
The original deadline was September 2020.
An official said that the pace of the work has been speeded up.
AAI is considering to inaugurate it by early next year, but there is no hurry to commission it because of a lean season due to the lockdown restrictions.