The Modi government is set to transform air travel in Mumbai with the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA), where passengers will soon be able to clear immigration at the first airport itself for connecting international flights. The airport, which will handle two crore passengers annually initially, is scheduled to be inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on October 8, with commercial flights starting within a month.

Travelers from cities like Ahmedabad, Surat, and Hyderabad flying to Mumbai will be able to clear immigration at NMIA before boarding their next flight, allowing a seamless transit similar to hubs in Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, or Singapore Changi. Officials said the key difference will be “Atma Nirbharta,” with the majority flying on Indian carriers rather than being feeders for foreign airlines.
Delhi is also adopting a similar model. Passengers from Amritsar, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Lucknow, and Varanasi will clear immigration on their way to Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) for international connections. Meanwhile, the Noida International Airport (NIA), expected to start operations later this year, will focus mainly on domestic transfers.