Opposing a policy decision or a course of action when not in power and implementing the same when given the chance, is quite commonplace in politics. Hence, one of the most eagerly awaited decisions of the new government was with regard to the proposed second airport for the city, at Parandur in Kanchipuram district. Before it came to power, its stance was clear that the project should not proceed taking into account the concerns of the various stakeholders and particularly, its impact on the environment and the livelihood of the locals. So the question was, would there now be a possibility of a flip? Recent developments have proven otherwise. With fresh land acquisitions grinding to a halt and protests thinning out on the back of oral statements and assurances given by various political sources, all that remains is the sounding of the Last Post to officially call off the project.
We are no strangers to development projects being caught up in a mix of bureaucratic inaction and political compulsions and being inordinately delayed or in some cases even shelved. It is worth remembering that the idea for an expansion of the city’s airport was first conceived around 1998-99, as it was felt that it would reach a saturation point by the 2030s. Earlier tangible attempts at expansion failed primarily on account of land acquisition challenges. The revival of the idea in 2022 by the previous government recognizing its importance in taking the state towards becoming a One Trillion Dollar economy came about as a positive step in the right direction.
However, that the project faced immense resistance from the time it was announced on account of various factors, primarily displacement of villages and also the impact it would have on the ecology has now been well-documented. Matters have not been helped on account of the fact that there has been opacity on the part of the government on critical aspects such as the hydrogeological studies undertaken by IIT Madras and Anna University, the findings of which have not been made public. This journal has echoed the most practical view with respect to the entire project, that is, recognizing the need for a secondary terminal, while at the same time emphasizing on adequate guardrails to ensure that all concerns particularly with respect to livelihood and environmental impact have been addressed (MM Vol XXXII, No 9, Vol XXXV, No 1).
Now that it is all but confirmed that the government is not going ahead with the Parandur project, certain questions need answering. Identifying an alternative suitable site would mean starting from ground zero and will have to take into account the fact that all the challenges faced when zeroing in on the current site with respect to land acquisition, feasibility studies, obtaining various clearances etc., even before construction can start would have to be gone through again. And assuming a site that is acceptable on all counts has been identified, what happens if there is another round of protests against that choice, something that is almost inevitable? The government needs to ensure that it has a watertight case on hand to effectively counter them. Yet another question that needs to be dealt with would be with respect to finding alternative use for the land already acquired at Parandur. Reports suggest that several agri-based options such as a processing zone are under consideration but have also brought to light concerns by those who gave up the land pinning their hopes on employment opportunities that would have manifested if the airport came up. Any alternate use plan needs to effectively accommodate them into the scheme of things.
The government needs to bite the bullet and start afresh immediately on the project, as much precious time has already been lost owing to the stalemate. Further delay will only result in long-term ramifications on the state’s growth prospects as a whole.