MUMBAI : International Airport (NMIA), marking a milestone in India’s aviation expansion. The event comes during Modi’s two-day visit to Maharashtra, where he will also dedicate key metro projects to the city.

The greenfield facility cleared its final regulatory hurdle on September 30 after receiving an aerodrome license from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Spread across 1,160 hectares, the Rs 16,700-crore project features a lotus-shaped terminal and is expected to redefine Mumbai’s connectivity under a twin-airport model with the existing Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, whose company holds a 74 percent stake in the venture alongside Maharashtra’s City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO), inspected the site earlier this week.

The new hub will open with strong airline backing. IndiGo has announced 18 daily flights to 15 cities at launch, scaling up to 79 daily services including 14 international routes by March 2026. Akasa Air will begin with over 100 weekly domestic departures, aiming for 300 domestic and 50 international services by late 2026. Air India Express will operate 20 daily departures initially, expanding to 55 flights, including five international, by mid-2026, while the broader Air India group eyes 60 daily departures by the winter of 2026.

In its first phase, NMIA will handle 20 million passengers annually, along with 500,000 metric tons of cargo. Upon completion of all five development stages, it will emerge as one of Asia’s largest aviation hubs, with capacity for 90 million passengers and 3.2 million metric tons of cargo per year. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has called the project “many times bigger” than Mumbai’s current airport.

Prime Minister Modi’s itinerary also includes inaugurating Mumbai Metro Line-3’s final section and Metro Line-2B, completing the long-awaited 33.5-kilometer Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ corridor, a move expected to ease traffic woes in India’s busiest metropolis.