SubscriberWrites: DMK and Adani’s profitable land grab plot for Chennai Parandur Airport

DMK’s plan to seize 2,000 acres for an airport ignores farmers' livelihoods and environmental sustainability, prioritizing profit-driven ‘development’ over people and nature.

Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin | ANI

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There comes a time in our lives when silence becomes complicity, and the luxury of ignoring injustice is a betrayal of humanity. The DMK government’s plans to seize 2,000 acres of fertile agricultural land for the construction of an airport under the guise of “development” is one such betrayal of the working people of Tamil Nadu, who will pay dearly for a project from which they will see little, if any, benefit. This is capitalism’s playbook on full display: the expropriation of the land from those who cultivate it to fuel profits for those who already have more than they need.

To put the scale of this project in perspective, 2,000 acres is more than just an area of soil—it is the backbone of local agriculture, supporting rice, sugarcane, and vegetable production in a region where agricultural jobs make up more than 50% of the local employment. Destroying this farmland impacts not just the farmers, but also the extended network of suppliers, laborers, and vendors that depend on these crops for their income and food. More than a dozen rivers and ponds are also at risk of being diverted or drained.

Yet, to hear the DMK government tell it, this project is “progress.” Really? Is “progress” now a euphemism for dismantling communities and scorched earth? Who do they think they’re fooling? Development, they assure us, will bring jobs, economic growth, prestige. Yes, but for whom? For whom will this airport be built?

The answer, of course, lies with the elite. At last count, only 11% of India’s 1.4 billion people have ever flown, and an even smaller group—perhaps 3% to 5%—flies regularly. Airports are primarily used by higher-income groups—business travellers, tourists, and professionals in urban centres—not by the rural or low-income citizens who are the backbone of India’s agricultural economy.

Proponents of this project will argue that an airport will bring economic benefits that will
“trickle down” to the local population. But let’s be clear: this “trickle down” theory rarely
holds water. The corporate class and wealthy investors will benefit most, profiting from the
hotels, shopping centres, and entertainment hubs that will inevitably spring up around the
airport. While some temporary construction jobs may “trickle down,” the long-term financial
benefits will remain out of reach for the rural citizens.

Bear in mind, Capitalism has always sought to create a “reserve army of labor”—displaced
workers who can be paid as little as possible and easily replaced. The same farmers who will lose their land may end up working as underpaid service staff in these establishments, robbed of their dignity and their heritage in the process. Make no mistake: this “trickle” isn’t wealth trickling down to the working class; if anything, it’s the airport that’ll trickle straight down into the lap of Adani, who is already running eight airports across the nation.

And then, of course, there’s the matter of necessity. Tamil Nadu already has four operational airports, including an international one in Chennai just over 50 kilometres away from the proposed site. So why this compulsion to build another?

Adding to the absurdity of this project is the environmental impact. The state has historically been vulnerable to water crises, and government data shows that the state’s water demand will exceed supply by as much as 50% by 2030. Adding pressure on local water resources by building an airport risk accelerating this crisis, with consequences that will ripple across agriculture, food security, and even public health. Marx understood that capitalism alienates humanity not only from each other but from nature itself. When the earth is seen as nothing but a resource to be exploited, our survival becomes a secondary consideration.

The government may call this “development,” but what kind of development destroys what it cannot replace? Is this the price we are willing to pay—to surrender our lands, our waters, our livelihoods to corporate greed? The DMK government may believe they act for the people. But we must remind them that we are the people, and we did not ask for this. We cannot accept a future built on the ruins of our fields. A nation that displaces its farmers in the name of development is a nation that has lost its soul.

Marx warned that capitalism’s hunger for profit knows no bounds, and here, in the fields of
Tamil Nadu, that warning rings painfully true. It is time to demand a new vision of
progress—one that values people over profit, protects our natural resources, and respects the dignity of labor.

Until we challenge the capitalist impulse to destroy in the name of development, projects like this will continue to ravage our land. Let this be our wake-up call, our moment to stand
together and declare: Enough.

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