Airports in India, despite the global economic situation, are on the move.
According to the Aug./Sept. issue of Airports International, passenger volume increased by 32.5% between 2006 and 2007, and in recent years, the number of "operational" airports in India has gone from 50 to 87. The flurry of activity surrounding the construction of airports in India is largely due to privatization of the aviation sector in the 1990s.
Among the most interesting of the expanded Indian airports is (Bengaluru International Airport), which is a case in point of triumph over red tape. Originally conceived before privatization, the airport was scheduled to be built by the Tata Group. Mired in red tape, Tata pulled out, and a Siemen-led consortium finished the project 14 years after it had begun. In the meantime travel demand to Bangalore is so heavy that the old airfield may be developed as a second airport.