Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport Inaugurated

# Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport Inaugurated ### Why in News? Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the **Alluri Sitarama Raju International Airport** at Bhogapuram, Andhra Pradesh, and launched development projects worth over **₹17,900 crore** in the state. ### What are the key highlights? - The airport, built at a cost of over **₹5,640 crore** by **GMR Visakhapatnam International Airport Limited** under a **Public-Private Partnership**, is the **first greenfield international airport** in Andhra Pradesh since the **2014 bifurcation**. - Designed to handle **6 million passengers annually** in its first phase, it features a **3,800-metre runway** capable of handling wide-body aircraft and is built to withstand cyclonic winds up to **275 kmph**. - The foundation stone was laid for the **ASIP Technologies semiconductor plant** at Tarluvada village, Visakhapatnam, with an investment of over **₹460 crore** in collaboration with **APACT (Republic of Korea)**. It is **South India’s first assembly and test facility** approved under the **India Semiconductor Mission (ISM)**, targeting **96 million chips per year**. - A performance by over **13,000 tribal dancers** at the venue set a **Guinness World Record** for the largest **Dhimsa dance**. ### Who was Alluri Sitarama Raju? - Alluri Sitarama Raju was an Indian revolutionary who led the **Rampa Rebellion of 1922** against the British **Madras Forest Act of 1882**. He is popularly known as **Manyam Veerudu** (Hero of the Jungles). ### Exam Connect **Alluri Sitarama Raju** → Leader of **Rampa Rebellion (1922)** against British forest laws **India Semiconductor Mission (ISM)** → Launched in **2021**; nodal ministry is **MeitY**