CHENNAI: It was in 2007 when the DMK was in power that the then Union government approved acquisition of 4,000 acres for Chennai’s second airport in Sriperumbudur. Fourteen years have since passed, and the second airport remains elusive. With another DMK government all set to assume office on May 7, all eyes are on it to know whether it will allocate land for the project.
The State is awaiting a nod from the Civil Aviation Ministry, which wanted a technical study to be done to finalise the location of the airport. Nonetheless, this newspaper learnt that officials are likely to select 4,500 acres in Parandur for the purpose subsequent to the technical study. It may be noted that the project did find a mention in State’s new industrial policy released before the Assembly elections.
Why it didn’t take off
According to sources, after the DMK government zeroed in on Sriperumbudur for second airport, the project did not move ahead as the government would not have been able to pay compensation under the new land-acquisition act if it had went ahead. This is because, of the 3,000 acres required for the airport, the State government had just 800 acres. It would have had to acquire 2,200 acres more.
As the project remained on paper for years, the advent of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Compensation, Rehabilitation and Resettlement) Act in 2013 made it way too costly an affair. According to the Act, an acre of land would cost Rs 3 crore to the State exchequer.
Origin of the hunt
The hunt for greenfield airport began in 1999 when AAI and State government together decided to work towards developing a new international airport in Chennai. The Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) was tasked with locating the land, and Scott Wilson Kirkpatric was appointed as technical consultant.
They identified five locations Manapakkam-Gerugambakkam-Kolappakkam belt; West Tambaram; Maraimalai; Sriperumbudur and areas near Vandalur for the airport. Later, 4,500 acres were located in Parandur.
TIDCO, the nodal agency for developing the greenfield airport in the State, is yet to decide on a consultant for preparing Techno-Economic Feasibility Report (TEFR) for assisting in obtaining statutory clearances and for conducting bid-process management for the selection of the developer to develop a airport in Parandur.
The TEFR would include survey, masterplan, financial model, mandatory clearances, bid management among other things., for the greenfield airport site through a consultant.
What’s next?
It is learnt that the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is likely to flag the need for second airport in Chennai to the new government. “The infrastructure panel of CII is working on complete details. It will be discussed and given to the new government,” said Dr S Chandrakumar, chairman of CII Tamil Nadu State Council.
Current capacity
Chennai airport sources told Express that currently the Chennai airport has the capacity to handle 15 million passengers a year, and with the new terminal coming up, the capacity will double to 30 million passenger a year. “As of now, Chennai airport can manage the passenger volumes for the next five to 10 years,” the official told Express.
The report Comprehensive Integrated Master Plan for Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor -- prepared by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), suggested that the additional airport in Chennai was necessary as passenger demand might surpass its capacity soon. The report stated that considering the time period of two to three years for land acquisition and development of three to four years, efforts for the creation of this airport needed to begin immediately.