Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurated the new integrated terminal T2 at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport or the CSIA on January 10, 2014. The four-storey swanky terminal of the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airportis made of glass, whose design has been inspired by a dancing peacock.
The steel used for the two roofs of the terminal would have been enough to build two Eiffel Towers. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Union ministers Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel and S Jaipal Reddy, civil aviation minister Ajit Singh, minister of state for civil aviation K C Venugopal and Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan.
Built at an estimated project cost of Rs 12,500 crore, the rebuilt airport will shortly throw open its gates for domestic and international passengers. The terminal buildings are easily one of the swankiest in the country.
The most attractive feature of the swanky terminal is the museum of artifacts. The new terminal's sprawling premises boast of thousands of artefacts and paintings, housing arguably one the largest collections at any airport. A three kilometer long 'art walk' titled 'Jaya He' has been built inside the T2. It displays Indian art pieces between the 8th century and 19th century
The state-of-the-art T2 will be larger than Singapore's Changi T3 (3.80 lakh sqm) and London's Heathrow T5 (3.53 lakh sqm). It will be able to accommodate 9,900 passengers during peak hours. It has a 7-lakh sq ft area of retail space, lounges and travel services.
The museum houses over 7,000 artefacts collected from over 1,500 artists across the country.
The terminal will have 188 check-in counters, 60 immigration sites for departing passengers and 76 immigration counters for incoming fliers.
Passengers will have access to 47 escalators and 73 elevators. The facilities also include 52 boarding gates, around 11,000 seats, 101 toilets, 44 travelators, 16 lounges, and 10 baggage carrousels, among others.
It has the country's tallest airport escalator at 11.6 meters.
Internet booth at the airport: Aiming high, Mumbai International Airport Ltd. has declared the facility will be "one of the best airports in the world that consistently delights the passengers." The new terminal project, carried out by the GVK-led consortium, missed several deadlines in past three years and incurred over 32 per cent cost escalation.
The car park at the airport will be able to accommodate 5,200 cars at any point. The nine storey car park is one of the biggest in the country. The car park is expertly camouflaged. Passengers only see the largest open garden in Mumbai.
The retail space at the airport is a shoppers delight spanning 21,000 sq meters. Formerly, the airport had only 5000 sq meters.
The terminal area will have 2300 CCTV cameras and a fire alarm system with 70,000 detection devices.
The airport will shift all international carriers to the new terminal within a few weeks and hopes that most domestic airlines will operate from a lower level in the same building in about a year after it demolishes the current terminal and finishes the fourth leg of the new, X-shaped building.
Speedy check-ins and immigration will be a huge plus. There is about 50,000 sq meters of check-in space with 188 check-in counters, 60 immigration counters (for departing passengers) and 76 counters for incoming fliers.
Passengers complain about the endless walking involved at the new Delhi airport. At Mumbai airport, the 37 travelators, 48 escalators and 72 elevators will make movement convenient.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Union ministers Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel and S Jaipal Reddy, civil aviation minister Ajit Singh, minister of state for civil aviation K C Venugopal and Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan.
It was a challenging project for GVK as it was one of the few live airports to undertake additional construction. It is difficult to engage in building work while airport operations continue.
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