Decentralised Development Essential for Balanced Growth: Capt. Gopinath

Bengaluru: Concentrating development in a single region is a risky and unsustainable model, aviation entrepreneur Capt. G.R. Gopinath has cautioned. He was speaking at a felicitation programme organised by the Karnataka State Brahmin Development Board in Bengaluru on Monday.

Gopinath said Karnataka is among the leading states in the country with a very high concentration of engineering colleges and notable scientific and defence institutions. With premier organisations such as ISRO, HAL, BEL and BEML headquartered in Bengaluru, he said the city offers one of the best ecosystems in India for the defence manufacturing sector.

“If the government supports this potential with the right policies and an enabling business environment, both the public and private sectors can attract large-scale investments,” he noted.

Rapid economic expansion and employment generation in the state, Gopinath said, demand the establishment of multiple airports in and around Bengaluru in different directions. Citing the city’s growing importance in the defence sector, he urged the government to set up aviation training schools in other regions of Karnataka and not restrict such facilities to the capital.

He expressed concern over the decline of the government-run aviation training school, which he said was once a symbol of the farsightedness of the Mysore rulers who had allotted land for its establishment. “Invisible forces are working to shut down the institution. This is not correct. The school must continue with the vision under which it was started,” he asserted.

Drawing comparisons with global cities, Gopinath pointed out that London operates six airports, Hong Kong has five, and even smaller nations such as the Maldives run multiple airports despite limited landmass. “For balanced development and employment for youth, more aviation infrastructure and training facilities are essential in Karnataka,” he said.

He also called on the government to accelerate planning ahead of the expiry of the Kempegowda International Airport concession agreement in seven years, adding that the old HAL Airport must never be closed and should instead be strengthened.

Karnataka State Brahmin Development Board Chairman Asagodu Jayasimha, Managing Director K. Deepshree and board staff were present.