CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu deserves airport infrastructure on par with Bengaluru and Hyderabad and should rank among the country's top three aviation hubs, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said, renewing its call for a second airport for Chennai amid uncertainty over the future of the proposed Parandur greenfield airport project.
Addressing reporters here on Tuesday, P Ravichandran, Chairman, CII Southern Region and President of Danfoss India, said that the South has some of the best airports in the country and Tamil Nadu deserves to be in the top three and not in the top seven.
Ravichandran clarified that Parandur did not figure in discussions when a CII delegation met Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay but had stressed the importance of leveraging the personal brand of Vijay to enhance the state's investment appeal.
“We don’t know what stand the government will take on the Parandur greenfield airport project. Whatever they decide, we need to respect that decision,” he added.
Tamil Nadu's Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) will need to expand by around 3.5 to 3.8 times from current levels to achieve the state's USD 1.6 trillion economy target, implying a sustained compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12-13 per cent over the next decade. The state has maintained a growth rate of 10-11 per cent over the past eight years.
"To achieve this, Tamil Nadu must sustain its growth momentum and significantly raise gross capital formation. The state will need to attract investments of about USD 140-150 billion over the coming years," Ravichandran said.
