Chennai: Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay-led TVK government has decided to scrap the proposed greenfield airport project at Parandur in Kancheepuram district, planned by the previous DMK government as Chennai’s second airport. Vijay told the assembly Monday the decision has been taken to safeguard agricultural lands and the livelihoods of farmers and residents.
“I stand firmly with the people protesting against the airport to be established in Chennai’s Parandur and the surrounding villages. In order to safeguard the villages, the Parandur airport will be scrapped,” Vijay said in a statement in the House under Rule number 110.
Rule 110 allows ministers to make statements on matters of public importance in the assembly, with the Speaker’s consent, without an immediate debate on the statement.
DMK members staged a walkout after being denied an opportunity to speak on the announcement. Party leader and former chief minister MK Stalin, under whose term the project was approved. called the TVK government’s decision a “devastating blow to the employment dreams of Tamil Nadu’s youth”, saying it would hand a “jackpot” to competing states.
Vijay recalled visiting Ekanapuram and nearby villages on 20 January 2025, when he met the protesters. He had also voiced his disapproval of the project at his first public meeting in Vikravandi in October 2024.
“To fulfil the promise I made to the people to protect their lands, the steps taken to establish a new airport in Parandur will be abandoned by the TVK government,” he told the assembly,
The government will identify alternative sites around Chengalpattu and other areas in Kancheepuram, where impact on farmland and residential areas is minimal. The government will form expert teams to conduct technical feasibility studies to set up the new airport, he said.
Meanwhile, the existing Chennai airport in Meenambakkam will be expanded with a fifth terminal on the northwestern side. The expansion is expected to add significant passenger capacity to the current 30 million passengers per year.
The government remains committed to the Hosur airport project, subject to Defence Ministry clearance on airspace restrictions.
As per the TVK-led government’s instructions, land acquisition for Parandur has been stalled. and a decision is yet to be made on the already acquired land. Around 1,700 acres of land had already been acquired by March this year.
Stakeholders have emphasised the need for a second airport in Chennai due to growing passenger traffic, industrial expansion and capacity constraints at Meenambakkam.
While multiple sites were examined over the last 20 years, it was in 2022 that the then DMK government shortlisted four locations including Padalam, Thiruporur, Pannur and Parandur, after obtaining a feasibility report.
The Airports Authority of India narrowed it to Pannur and Parandur. In August 2022, Parandur was selected.
The project envisaged acquiring roughly 5,000–5,700 acres across 13 villages, with plans of dual parallel runways for simultaneous take off and landing, three terminals and handling up to 100 million passengers annually planned at an estimated cost of around Rs 27,400 crore. It was positioned to support the industrial corridor and improve connectivity.
However, the villagers opposed it.
The Civil Aviation Ministry granted in-principle approval in April 2025 and the state gave it special project status under the Tamil Nadu Land Consolidation for Special Projects Act to ease acquisition.
Residents of Ekanapuram began an indefinite agitation on 16 December 2022, which continued for over 1,000 days.
Vijay had also extended support and met the protesters in 2025.
The reasons for their objections included the displacement of more than 1,000 families, loss of fertile multi-crop agricultural land, impact on wetlands and water bodies, disruption of canal systems linked to Chennai’s flood management, and uncertain livelihoods.
After the TVK assumed power, ministers reiterated the party’s unchanged stand that a second airport is needed, but not at the cost of agricultural land and water bodies.
And Monday, Vijay formally announced the scrapping of the project. The decision drew sharp criticism from the opposition DMK.
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‘Jackpot for competing states’
Former chief minister MK Stalin called the scrapping of the Parandur project an irreversible setback for Tamil Nadu’s growth.
“The announcement made today by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to drop the Parandur International Airport project will set the State’s development back by several years. Tamil Nadu’s interests cannot be mortgaged for petty political considerations. An announcement of such far-reaching importance being made under Rule No. 110, shutting out any opportunity for debate or even for members to voice their views, is deeply troubling,” he wrote on X.
Stalin further said that Tamil Nadu leads the country across sectors, from electronics exports to automobiles and stated that a world-class airport in its capital is not merely desirable, but absolutely essential.
“Rejecting such a vital project is not change. It is a massive disappointment. The site was carefully selected after evaluating all available alternatives, and the land acquisition process has been almost completed. With several stages of preparatory work and approvals already completed, we had drawn up plans to ensure that construction could begin at a rapid pace once we returned to office. If the new government now starts all over again, identifies another location and goes through the entire process before work can even begin, Tamil Nadu’s growth trajectory itself will DROP,” he said on X.
Dropping Parandur is not Change. It's an irreversible setback for Tamil Nadu's growth
The announcement made today by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to drop the Parandur International Airport project will set the State’s development back by several years. Tamil Nadu’s… pic.twitter.com/QHZdVdK21L
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) August 24, 2026
The decision would push the state to the bottom of the table in terms of attracting investments, he said, adding the announcement is nothing short of a jackpot for competing states. “Without industrial growth, economic targets of one trillion USD or 1.5 trillion USD are simply impossible to achieve. Taken without foresight, planning or consultation, this decision by the TVK government is a devastating blow to the employment dreams of Tamil Nadu’s youth.”
DMK leader and former Industries Minister TRB Raja called it an extremely sad day for Tamil Nadu.
“Years of hard work and intense planning to give Chennai the dual-runway Greenfield airport it desperately needs have been sacrificed at the altar of politics. Industry experts understand the stakes. Investment promotion agencies in neighbouring states will now quietly rejoice, saying: ‘Tamil Nadu has shot itself in the foot’,” he wrote on X.
He further added that Chennai’s growth and that of Tamil Nadu’s will now face a serious hurdle. “We most urgently need a truly world-class international airport capable of handling large aircraft, with two operational 4,000m+ parallel runways. I find it extremely difficult to believe that the very officers who worked so hard on this project supported this decision. They know better than most that there is no better alternative option given the environmental and aviation concerns.”
TRB Raja further said that the consequences of quashing the project would go far beyond just an airport and said that industrial growth has been compromised for plain politics.
“The entire industrial corridor from Poonamallee to Kanchipuram, which accounts for nearly 41% of India’s electronics exports, could have received a massive boost. Better port connectivity, reliable water infrastructure for industry and direct global air connectivity could have boosted this region and TN into one of the world’s most important manufacturing hubs, creating at least a million new jobs over time.”
Former minister Thangam Thennarasu and other DMK leaders also echoed concerns about economic damage, potential flight of industries to Andhra Pradesh, and the undoing of careful technical evaluation that led to Parandur’s selection. DMK members staged a walkout in the Assembly after being denied an opportunity to speak on the announcement.
Meanwhile, Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI) Chennai, which has been pushing for a second airport in Tamil Nadu, said it respects the government’s position and its sensitivity to the concerns of farmers, but it views this decision as a setback that further delays the city’s quest for a world-class airport.
Any large land acquisition will inevitably face farmer and environmental challenges, but these concerns must be balanced against the state’s development interests, said the industry body that represents real estate developers and builders.
“Connectivity remains central to Chennai’s growth story. However, we have slipped to sixth position in passenger traffic, with Kolkata overtaking us. Peer cities are moving decisively on aviation infrastructure Bengaluru and Hyderabad continue to expand and plan additional airport capacity, while the Delhi-NCR and Mumbai regions have added new airports alongside their existing ones. Chennai has historically competed with these cities for investment, industrial relocation and talent, and sustained momentum on airport infrastructure will be important to protect that competitive position,” a statement from CREDAI said.
CREDAI Chennai urged the government to fast-track the selection and finalisation of an alternative site without delay. The association also welcomed the interim step of expanding Meenambakkam, including the proposed new terminal capacity, but cautioned that this expansion has severe constraints.
This is an updated version of the report
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)