As Chennai continues to wait for a second airport for several years now, the State government has once again identified four sites for building a greenfield airport.
Sources said the shortlisted locations include Sriperumbudur, Parandur, Tiruporur and Mamallapuram. “It is not easy to finalise a site soon. We should take into account the land availability, the number and type of runways that can be constructed and other such issues. We have to see the distance from Tambaram Air Force Base too,” a source said.
A source from the State government said, “We understand that the talk on this airport has been around for years now. But things are progressing now. We understand the economic and business potential that comes by setting up this airport.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Industries Minister Thangam Thennarasu said the State government and TIDCO had requested Airports Authority of India (AAI) to send in a team to study the feasibility of the four locations.
More than a decade ago, Sriperumbudur was identified as a suitable location. In 2019, the AIADMK government looked at Parandur and Mamandur following which the Airports Authority of India sent a team that conducted a pre-feasibility study and submitted a report to the State government.
After that, Parandur was seen a favourable location and nearly 4,700 acres of land in villages nearby were chosen. Even if a site is chosen, it is bound to take at least 3 to 4 years to build the new airport as it will need some approvals.
ADVERTISEMENT