Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Tuesday lashed out at the Planning Commission, holding it responsible for the delay in the modernisation of Kolkata and Chennai airports.

In a letter to Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Patel said there were constant objections from the Commission about the size and scale of the airport modernisation projects in Kolkata and Chennai, which was a major cause for the delay in the projects. "This despite the fact that the Committee of Infrastructure headed by the prime minister has approved the projects," the letter read.

Patel added in the letter that there had been a similar delay in awarding the contracts for the Delhi and Mumbai airports due to the stance of Planning Commission officials.