India, Oct. 31 -- Nine months after a chartered aircraft crash killed the then deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and four others at Baramati airport, the Maharashtra government has approved the first phase of its upgrade at an estimated cost of Rs.65 crore. The works will focus on runway improvements, safety infrastructure and air traffic management facilities at the airfield.

Deepak Kapoor, vice-chairman and managing director of the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC), announced the approval on X on Friday, describing it as an important step towards modernising the airport.

The first phase will include recarpeting of the existing runway, construction of a runway-end safety area (RESA), grading of the surrounding area, constru...