People watch the inauguration of Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport telecast live on a screen at RK Beach in Visakhapatnam on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: V. RAJU
The city wore an unusually quiet look through Saturday (August 01, 2026) morning, even as excitement over the inauguration of the Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport at Bhogapuram spilled into its streets. With Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicating the greenfield airport to the nation, Visakhapatnam experienced the day less as a bystander and more as an extension of the celebration under way 45 km away.The district administration and the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) set up around ten LED screens at key points across the city, including RK Beach, the Railway Station, and the RTC Complex. The screens, which had previously served as countdown timers in the run-up to the inauguration, allowed residents to follow the proceedings live without traveling to the venue. The arrangement reflected the scale of official planning that had gone into the day, with authorities eager for the occasion to be felt across the city and not confined to Bhogapuram alone.Schools in Visakhapatnam were declared closed for the day. The city police had advised residents to avoid non-essential travel between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m., and again between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., with restrictions also placed on heavy vehicles throughout the day. For many, this meant a Saturday spent closer to home, with the LED screens becoming informal gathering points.At the same time, a steady stream of buses ferried people from the city towards Bhogapuram throughout the morning, as part of arrangements to bring attendees to the public meeting that followed the inauguration.Vehicles fitted with digital screens promoting the new airport had been a familiar sight in the city throughout the preceding week. Published - August 01, 2026 07:08 pm IST
