Delhi police has branded the cluster of luxury hotels being built adjacent to Indira Gandhi International Airport as a security risk, due to its close proximity to one of the runways.

 

According to the local police, the 45-acre site - dubbed Aerocity - is just 200 metres away from one of the runways at the gateway, making the new hotels a potential hot spot from which to launch militant and terrorist attacks.

The hotel complex is being constructed by a public private partnership consisting of the government and Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL).

According to a report in Reuters, however, GMR Infrastructure Limited, which is a major shareholder of DIAL and leading the project, dismissed the claims that the site was a security risk and said it had received all the necessary clearances beforehand to start developing the land.

Arun Bhagat, a spokesperson for GMR, also disputed the figure given by police that the commercial development was only 200 metres away from the runway.

Speaking to Reuters, Bhagat said it was "many times that" but declined to give a precise figure.

He said: "You can say it's in the vicinity of the airport but it's not bang there.

"As far as we're concerned, we know that we've complied with everything that was needed to be done."

Deepak Mishra, special commissioner of operations at Delhi Police, said: "They are very close to the runway. They claim that they have got all kinds of clearances regarding the work. Security vetting should have been done."

Speaking about the dangers associated with the proximity of the hotels to the runway, Mishra added it made the airport vulnerable to: "any kind of sabotage. It may be some terrorists, it may be some anti-nationals, it may be some weird character."

GMR was awarded the contract to develop and operate the airport in 2006, with an initial concession period of 30 years.

The first hotel is set to open next March.