user charge at Bhogapuram airport higher than Delhi, Hyderabad; travelers looking for a cut

A view of construction at the Greenfield International Airport in Bhogapuram near Visakhapatnam. File | Photo credit: Special arrangement

Flying from Bhogapuram International Airport is likely to be a costly affair, thanks to the imposition of a ‘fat’ User Development Fee (UDF) on both arrivals and departures. The UDF to be collected at Bhogapuram airport is more than New Delhi, Hyderabad and other places.

At many airports, there is no UDF for arriving passengers, and at others it is also very nominal, according to representatives of the Air Passengers Association. There is currently no UDF at the Visakhapatnam airport, which will soon cease operations once a new airport is constructed at Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district. Passengers from Bhogapuram will have to bear both transport charges to reach the airport and UDF once the new airport starts operations.

Recently, India’s Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) allowed the GMR group to collect ₹835 UDF for domestic flyers from Bhogapuram airport. The charge will be ₹355 for passengers arriving at the airport from multiple locations. The UDF is ₹1,255 for international passengers and ₹545 for inbound passengers. The GMR Group, which operates Shamshabad Airport (Hyderabad), charges ₹750 for boarding domestic passengers and UDF is ₹1,500 for international passengers. There is no UDF at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad for both domestic and international arriving passengers.

The group, which also operates the New Delhi airport, charges ₹129 for departing domestic passengers and arriving passengers have to pay only ₹56; the fee is ₹650 for international passengers and the UDF is ₹275 for arrivals. A spokesman for the GMR Group declined to comment on the huge differences in UDF collection at airports operated by the same group. The spokesperson said the selection of UDF was based on the recommendations of AERA.

Speaking to The Hindu, former Vice-Chancellor of Ambedkar University and former president of the Andhra Pradesh Confederation of Consumer Organisations, Hanumanthu Lajapathirai, said that the luck of a new airport in North Andhra would be short-lived, with the entrenchment of the mighty UDF at the Bhogapuram airport. “AERA should not allow airport operators to collect UDF even for arriving passengers as they do not spend much time at the airport,” said Mr. Lajapathirai.

Andhra Pradesh Air Travelers Association Vice President Oruganti Naresh Kumar and Vizianagaram Chamber of Commerce President Kapuganti Srinivas requested the Civil Aviation Ministry to reduce the UDF at Bhogapuram Airport as many passengers are from backward areas of the region. “The government should immediately extend financial assistance to the airport operator if it is not viable. So that the group can consider reducing charges,” Mr. Srinivas said.

Telugu Shakti President BV Ram said that his association, working on the issues of AP people, would submit a statement to Union Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu and AERA officials in New Delhi very soon.

Published – 28 Jun 2026 13:06 IST