CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government’s cancellation of the Parandur airport project has left several villagers in Kancheepuram in limbo, with unanswered questions regarding the fate of the compensations paid and the 1,802 acres of land already acquired. While the state proposes repurposing the acquired land for eco-friendly industries, environmental groups strongly criticise the move.
They argue that cancelling the airport project ostensibly to protect fertile wetlands and livelihood of farmers and then introducing alternative industrial projects in the same site will be contradictory. Any new industrial proposal will severely disrupt the region’s sensitive hydrological systems and river basins, they say.