Cancellation of Parandur airport project by TVK-led Tamil Nadu government: compilation

Villagers of Ekanapuram in Kancheepuram district stage a lakeside protest against the proposed Parandur Greenfield Airport project May 21, 2023 | Photo credit: B. Velankanni Raj

Fulfilling one of its poll promises, the Tamil Nadu government led by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has officially announced that the proposed greenfield airport project planned as Chennai’s second airport at Paranduru in Kancheepuram district will be dropped. Announcing the decision in the Assembly on 24 August 2026, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay said that Chennai needed a second airport but not at the cost of agricultural land, the livelihood of farmers.

Estimated to cost around ₹27,400 crore, the Parandur project was planned on 3,000 acres of fertile agricultural land and was expected to eventually handle up to 100 million air passengers annually.

The move to shelve the project four years after Parandur was finalized as the site for Chennai’s second airport comes against the backdrop of years of stiff opposition and sustained protests by farmers and villagers around Ekanapuram in Kancheepuram district since 2022 citing critical environmental threats; loss of farmland, water bodies and livelihoods; and risks of family displacement.

On the other hand, the cancellation of the airport project has raised questions about the future course of action regarding the roughly 1,700 acres of agricultural land that had already been acquired under the former DMK government.

Meanwhile, the chorus is growing, urging the state government to expedite the identification of an alternative, new site for Chennai’s second airport.

Published – 28 Aug 2026 13:38 IST