In his first mass outreach, matinee icon and founder president of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) Vijay is meeting the farmers and villagers protesting against the new greenfield airport at Parandur for months, in the neighbouring Kancheepuram district on Monday.
Accompanied by party functionaries, he is meeting them at the Ambedkar maidan in Ekanapuram village, the epicentre of the protests, continuing for over 900 days.
Despite opposition from the residents of 13 villagers, who are concerned about the adverse impact on the environment, agriculture and water bodies among others, the state government is proceeding with the project and has decided to call for tenders to choose the concessionaire in March. The concessionaire will build and manage the airport.
At its first state conference, the TVK opposed the project citing displacement and environmental concerns and now Vijay is walking the extra mile to reach out to the people in an attempt to corner the ruling DMK, which he has declared as the party’s political enemy.
The BJP has been identified as the ideological enemy. This is the first time that Vijay is stepping out to meet the people.
The state police is not allowing outsiders entry into the villages apprehensive of supporters joining the protest. As such, the party functionaries met the district police and secured permission for Vijay’s visit. Party general secretary Bussy Anand visited Ekanapuram to prepare the arrangements.
The greenfield project, proposed at a cost of Rs 29,144 crore, will be constructed in 2,172.73 hectares. The area has many water bodies and lush green paddy fields. According to environmentalists, the recent cyclone Fengal which wreaked havoc in northern Tamil Nadu, has inundated large swathes in Parandur, offering yet another opportunity to ascertain the viability of the project.
Reacting to Vijay’s visit, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu said, “Any leader of a political party can visit Parandur and interact with the people. If they bring their grievances to the notice of the state government, they will be addressed with earnestness.”
Speaking to reporters in Virudhunagar, he made it clear that the project was very much necessary and hence the government was carrying out land acquisition.
“A new airport will spur development and economic growth in the area. Compared to airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, the airport at Chennai, spread over 1000 acres, is very small and will not be able to cater to the growing demands of air traffic. As of now, two crore passengers are using it and it will go up to 8 crores by the next decade and Chennai doesn’t have space for expansion necessitating a new airport. However, the government is making efforts to resettle the displaced residents as their livelihood is of utmost importance and the Chief Minister is particular about it,” he explained.