Kolkata, July 11 (IANS) After years of negotiation, the process of relocating the Bankra Mosque from the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) airport area to extend the runway began, government officials said on Saturday.

Entry passes for the mosque via the airport have been closed as of today. Prayers inside the mosque have been stopped from today. Dum Dum Uttar MLA Sourav Sikdar was present in the area this morning and spoke to the locals about the issue. Later, the MLA said that most of the people who came to offer prayers have agreed to this step.

He added that airport security is also being considered in this regard and requested that no incitement to the incident be given.

The 136-year-old Gauripur Jama Masjid is known as the ‘Bankra Masjid’. The mosque is located within the airport. There has been talk of relocating the mosque for a long time. Dum Dum Airport has two runways – the main (big) runway is used for takeoffs and landings, while the second runway is smaller. The mosque is located at a short distance from that runway.

Experts say that if the first runway is temporarily closed for maintenance, there will be problems with large aircraft taking off and landing. Airport officials said that the mosque also poses a risk to aircraft taking off and landing, and that work on expanding the second runway has also been stalled. There have been discussions about moving the mosque for several decades, but no firm decision has been reached on the issue so far.

After the change of government in the state, steps were taken to remove the mosque from inside the NSCBI airport. A meeting was also held with airport authorities and in administrative circles. Attempts to remove the mosque from that land had been going on for several days. The process finally started on Saturday. There were also many questions about the airport’s security due to the presence of that mosque.

Since Saturday, the airport has stopped issuing entry passes for entry through the airport gate, and prayers have also been stopped in the mosque. It is reported that police and security guards have also been deployed to maintain social harmony.

A meeting was already held at the North 24 Parganas District Magistrate’s office with the local MLAs and members of the mosque committee. A special team inspected the mosque, and a meeting was also held with the airport security committee. It was decided that a final decision on the 136-year-old Gauripur Jama Masjid would be made after Eid.

The mosque committee had earlier said they did not want any damage to the airport or any disruption to security caused by them, and that the airport authorities had offered to build a larger mosque outside the airport. However, they added that they were not in a position to take a final decision on the relocation at the moment.

Later, a decision was reached in this regard, and everything was settled amicably.

–IANS

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