Rajkot: Rajkot International Airport in Hirasar has received official approval from the Ministry of Civil Aviation to start cargo operations. The facility will operate from the old terminal building at the greenfield airport. With this new service, industrialists and traders from Rajkot will no longer need to rely on Ahmedabad to send or receive goods by air.

According to officials, the service is expected to become operational in the next couple of days once freight charges are finalised, although an exact launch date has yet to be announced. The new cargo service comes about a year after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the airport in July 2023.

Parth Ganatra, Vice President of the Rajkot Chamber of Commerce, welcomed the development and stated that the cargo operations will benefit around 10,000 traders and industrialists across the Saurashtra region.

Meanwhile, he also cautioned that if shipping cargo from Ahmedabad remains cheaper, traders might still prefer Ahmedabad over Rajkot despite the convenience. DeshGujarat