The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday defended its decision to abandon the proposed Parandur greenfield airport project, rejecting the Opposition DMK’s claim that the project was nearly 90 per cent complete.
Energy Resources and Law Minister R Nirmal Kumar told the Assembly that only about 48 per cent of the required land had been acquired. The project needed 5,846 acres, but only around 1,802 acres had been acquired so far.
The minister said the proposed site also contained several water bodies and canals. Of the 1,972 acres of government land required, around 1,558 acres comprised water bodies and canals. He further said the project had not received environmental clearance and that an environmental impact assessment had not been completed.
The government also cited plans to expand Chennai International Airport at Meenambakkam, with the combined capacity expected to reach 55 million passengers annually.
The Parandur project, proposed in 2022 at an estimated cost of Rs 27,400 crore, had faced prolonged protests from farmers and villagers over land acquisition, wetlands and environmental concerns.
Chief Minister Vijay announced on Monday that the project would be dropped and that an alternative location for Chennai’s second airport would be identified after technical feasibility studies.
On Tuesday, villagers from Ekanapuram and nearby areas met Vijay and thanked him for scrapping the project.