Visitors to the newly constructed Donyi Polo Airport here will be greeted by the majestic Great Hornbill gate made of bamboo.

The design of the gate by Arunachalee architect Aroty Panyang is in the shape of the Great Hornbill – the state bird, which would give a sense of pride to the people and inspire the present and future generations about the culture and tradition of the state.

The gate is made of bamboo, a material which has deep tradition and relationship with the people of the state.

With a height of 23 feet and 82 feet width, it has been constructed in a record time of five months, to allow unhindered movement of heavy vehicles and airport traffic as required.

The airport is located at a distance of 15 kilometre from Itanagar.

Magnificent ‘Welcome Gate’ of Donyi Polo airport is a splendid creation by Arunachali architect Miss Aroty Panyang, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu said in a social media post.

“In sync with our culture and collective vision of sustainable development, ‘Welcome Gate’ is made of Bambusa tulda and Bambusa balcooa. Proud of Miss Aroty! Inspired by Arunachal’s state bird – The Great Hornbill – the design of Welcome Gate is inspiring and symbolizes our deep connect with tribal culture,” the chief minister added.

“One of the biggest challenge in this project was the time-frame for construction which, was during the monsoon. We overcame the challenge by pre-fabricating parts of the structure offsite in a covered location which ensured systematic and timely production of all requirements. The structure was completed in five months, prior to the scheduled delivery date,” Panyang said.

As airports represent flight and the first plane was inspired by the flight of birds, the Great Indian Hornbill with distinct features, served as the perfect inspiration for the design of the gate, Panyang said.

All aspects of the Great Hornbill were studied – the features, the form and the flight. Some of the most striking characteristics were the beak and how majestic it is in relation to the size of the body, and the bird’s great wingspan.

The much awaited Donyi-Polo Airport has been designed keeping every aspect in mind to furnish a quality & visually appealing Airport. Our state possess great talents that needs to be encouraged, the Great Hornbill Gate designed by Ms. A Panyang is already captivating every folks. pic.twitter.com/DPpGWNsMUt

— MyGov Arunachal Pradesh (@MyGovArunachal) October 28, 2022

These features were incorporated into the design of the gate. As the wings span across the entry and exit roads, the gate is designed as a double headed Hornbill so that the people entering the airport as well as entering the state by flight are greeted by this great and majestic bird, she added.

“The gate is built entirely with bamboo and cane from the state and only the best quality materials were used. The process of building started with selection of materials. Healthy groves were identified and only bamboo which is four years old was harvested.

“We chose two types of bamboo – Bambusa tulda (Jati Bamboo) for the roofing and Bambusa balcooa (Baluka) for the arches and main structure. Once the bamboo was harvested it was then treated and preserved with non-toxic salts such as borax and boric acid powder which increases its life by several decades,” Panyang revealed.

Our team consists of members who are experts at working with this material. They managed the entire process from harvest, treatment, to pre-fabrication and construction of the final structure. Since they have grown up with the material, they are able to shape and mould it with complete ease and confidence, she said.