'Where Even a Red Bus Didn't Reach, an Airbus Has Arrived': Nara Lokesh on Bhogapuram Airport

Andhra Pradesh IT and Human Resources Development Minister Nara Lokesh strongly criticised the previous YSRCP government and its president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, accusing them of belittling North Andhra and its development aspirations. Speaking at the inauguration of the Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport in Bhogapuram, Lokesh said the project stands as a fitting response to those who once questioned its necessity.

Addressing the gathering in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, Lokesh recalled that critics had mocked the airport proposal by asking why an airport was needed in a place where "even a red bus does not reach." He said the successful completion of the project had proved them wrong.

"Where people once said even a red bus would not come, today an airport has come, an Airbus has landed, and the Prime Minister himself has arrived. This is the strength of North Andhra," Lokesh remarked.

The minister said Prime Minister Modi had given wings to the dreams of the people of North Andhra and described the airport as a symbol of the combined vision of the Centre and the state. He also praised Modi's leadership, saying it reflected courage, confidence and a vision for a secure and developed India. According to Lokesh, the airport represents the shared efforts of farmers, workers and successive development initiatives.

Describing the partnership between the Union and state governments as a "double-engine bullet train government," Lokesh said the Centre had extended crucial support to Andhra Pradesh after its bifurcation. He credited Modi's leadership for the rapid completion of the Bhogapuram airport, continued funding for Amaravati and Polavaram, the establishment of the Visakhapatnam Railway Zone, efforts to protect the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, and the arrival of major investments, including the Google Data Centre and ArcelorMittal projects.

Lokesh congratulated GMR Group Chairman Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao for completing the airport in record time and appreciated Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu for his contribution to the project.

Looking ahead, the minister said North Andhra was shedding its image as a region marked by migration and underdevelopment. Instead, he envisioned it emerging as a major hub for industry, information technology, tourism and logistics, driving Andhra Pradesh's future economic growth.

He expressed confidence that young people from the region would no longer need to migrate elsewhere in search of jobs, saying employment opportunities would increasingly come to North Andhra. Declaring that the "East Coast India era" had begun, Lokesh said the NDA government's development agenda would transform the eastern coastline into a powerful engine of growth.