Chief Minister Vijay’s office will soon shift to Namakkal Kavignar Maaligai

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay at Namakkal Kavignar Maaligai at Secretariat in Chennai. | Photo credit: X/@CMOTamilnadu

The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), operating out of the main block of Fort St. George in Chennai, will soon move to the 10th floor of Namakkal Kavignar Maaligai, amid reports in sections of the media that the state government is considering shifting the secretariat from the Fort, a prominent Chennai relic of another colonial era.

At present, the 10th floor of the Namakkal Kavignar Maaligai (also located on the Fort St. George premises) is used for conferences, including those chaired by the Chief Minister with District Collectors and Superintendents of Police. Space constraints are cited as the primary reason for the shift. The official said that even after the CMO shifts to the 10th floor, Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay may occasionally use the existing Chief Minister’s Chamber in the main block.

View of Namakkal Kavignar Maaligai at Fort St. George in Chennai. File | Photo credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam

There have been reports that the site of the mofussil bus terminus at Koyambedu, which is now lying unused after the terminus was shifted to Kilambakkam, is being considered for the location of the secretariat. However, the government feels that since Koyambedu is already overcrowded, shifting the secretariat there would only worsen the situation.

The Highways Research Station (HRS) campus opposite the Lok Bhavan in Guindy is another place that is occupying the attention of the government, including several ministers. Twenty-two years ago, when Jayalalithaa was Chief Minister, the offices and educational institutions located at the Anna University campus in Guindy, as well as nearby campuses such as the Madras School of Economics (MSE) and HRS, were asked to shift elsewhere so that work could begin on the new secretariat complex in Kotturpuram. The research station was even partially moved to another location in Guindy. Eventually, the government abandoned the Kotturpuram project and allowed HRS to return to its original site.

“As of now, it (the new location for the secretariat) is all in the realm of ideas,” the official noted.

Published – 24 Jul 2026 12:23 IST