CHENNAI: Commencing preliminary work for the expansion of the Chennai airport, the State government appointed a special district revenue officer (DRO) for land acquisition for the project.

D Ambayiranathan has been appointed as the Special DRO for the airport expansion project. He was serving as a Land Acquisition Officer in the Highways Department in Villupuram. The official is likely to be provided with a separate office at Tambaram or Pallavaram to oversee the land acquisition process, said official sources.

Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay had announced the government's decision to drop the proposed airport at Parandur and identify alternative sites for a new second airport for Chennai. Making a suo motu statement in the Assembly, he said a new terminal, Terminal 5, would be developed in the north-western area of Chennai airport in collaboration with the Airports Authority of India (AAI), along with an approach road and a flyover.

Following the announcement, the government initiated steps towards land acquisition for the Chennai airport expansion.

The first attempt to develop a new airport to cater to Chennai's growing requirements came soon after the DMK came to power in 2006.

Sriperumbudur, around 50 km from Chennai, was surveyed as a possible location. However, the proposal did not progress. In 2011, after the AIADMK came to power, there were renewed discussions on the project, but no significant progress was made.