Andhra Pradesh IT and Industries Minister Nara Lokesh’s tongue-in-cheek rejection of a socail medai proposal for an airport at Sri City to serve Chennai has set off a political and economic debate online after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay scrapped the proposed Parandur greenfield airport project.
The post quickly went viral, with many users interpreting it as a political jab at the neighbouring Tamil Nadu government’s handling of Chennai’s airport expansion plans. The existing Chennai airport is also set to be expanded, including a proposed fifth terminal. I stand firm with the protesters against the proposed airport. Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. For now, Lokesh’s response may have grounded the social media proposal, but the airport debate has taken off as a political talking point across the two neighbouring states.
The Chief Minister said the government would instead identify an alternative site that causes less disruption to agricultural land and residential areas. Defending the decision in the Assembly, Vijay said, “We are dropping Parandur airport. Stalin described its as an “irreversible setback” to the State’s growth, while IPS officer-turned-politician K. Annamalai said identifying a new site and completing land acquisition and approvals could take at least another decade.
