The Meghalaya High Court has directed all concerned authorities to work in coordination and begin the long-pending expansion of Barapani Airport without delay after the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granted execution-level approval for the project.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Wanlura Diengdoh issued the direction while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) on the proposed expansion of the airport runway.
The court accepted an affidavit submitted by Transport Department Special Secretary K.L. Nongbri, detailing a site inspection and stakeholder meeting held at the airport on July 30. The meeting was chaired by Commissioner and Secretary (Transport) Sanjay Goyal, who is also the nodal officer for the project.
During the meeting, the Meghalaya Government informed the DGCA that it had submitted an undertaking on December 10, 2025, assuring that all obstacles violating the Obstacle Limitation Surfaces (OLS) would be removed before September 30, 2026.
The DGCA had earlier granted concept and design-level approval on January 27, 2026, subject to the clearance of these obstacles before execution-level permission. The aviation regulator has now issued execution-level approval with certain conditions.
Deputy Solicitor General of India Nitesh Mozika produced the DGCA’s approval letter dated August 4, 2026, before the court. The approval allows the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to expand the runway towards the Runway-04 side, including construction of runway shoulders, the Runway End Safety Area (RESA), and other associated infrastructure. The AAI will later seek commissioning-level approval in accordance with DGCA norms.
Appearing for the state government, Advocate General Amit Kumar, assisted by Additional Advocate General Khalid Khan, assured the court that all conditions laid down by the DGCA would be fulfilled within the stipulated timeframe before seeking final clearance.
Observing that the project should not face further delays, the High Court directed all authorities to ensure close coordination and begin the expansion work at the earliest. It also asked all parties to submit status reports on the progress of the project during the next hearing scheduled for September 1.
