India, April 25 -- Three days after the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) denied approval for Noida airport's chief executive officer (CEO) Christoph Schnellmann to continue in his role, the airport management on Friday announced the appointment of Nitu Samra as its interim CEO.

"This change follows directions issued by BCAS that the chief executive officer of an airport in India is required to be an Indian national," a statement issued by Noida International Airport (NIA) said.

The announcement comes three days after the Union home ministry turned down a request to tweak rules to allow a foreign national to hold the post of CEO of a greenfield airport, keeping in mind security of air operations.

The decision directly impacted N...