The Jamnagar airport in Gujarat was turned into an international airport for 12 days from February 25 to March 6 on account of Indian billionaire Anant Ambani’s pre-wedding celebrations, Airports Authority of India (AAI) disclosed in an RTI.
Responding to the RTI filed by activist Ajay Bose, AAI also revealed that a total of 524 flights – both domestic and international – plied to and from the Jamnagar airport during the said period.
The AAI however refused to divulge information regarding the expenditure incurred by the government to set up customs, immigration, and quarantine facilities in the airport.
The opulent pre-wedding ceremony of Mukesh Ambani’s youngest son Anant and Radhika Merchant was hosted in Vantara, a wildlife sanctuary in Gujarat, the brainchild of Anant.
The Jamnagar airport, which is a defence airport, was declared an international airport to accommodate high-profile international figures like Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Fink, Ivanka Trump, and others who flew down to attend the six-day ceremony.
Popstar Rihanna, magician David Blaine, and Indian stars like Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan performed at the pre wedding ceremony.
Several other celebrities from Bollywood were hosted in the venue by setting up temporary shelters.
The Hindu had earlier reported that AAI had erected a passenger terminal building in the airport to welcome the guests. Though it is a defence airport, the Indian Air Force had given permission to the airport staff access to their sensitive “technical” area as well.
Further, to accommodate the inflow of guests, AAI had also expanded the size of its passenger building from 475 sq m to 900 sq m, allowing it to accommodate nearly 360 passengers during peak hours as compared to the 180 earlier, The Hindu’s report said.