Is Parandur grounded? What about other options: Edappadi K Palaniswami

CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary and Edappadi MLA K Palaniswami on Tuesday sought clarity from the TVK government on the status of the proposed Parandur greenfield airport and urged it to consider establishing an alternative international airport in a drought-hit area.

Participating in the debate on the Revised Budget 2026-27 in the Assembly, Palaniswami questioned whether the government was proceeding with the Parandur project or had abandoned it. He also accused the ruling dispensation of failing to fulfil several poll promises.

"We want to know the status of the Parandur greenfield airport project. Is the government continuing it or dropping it? Anyway, Tamil Nadu needs another international airport. I urge the ruling government to construct another international airport in a drought-hit area," he said.

Palaniswami also compared the State's financial position during the AIADMK regime between 2011 and 2021 with the present situation. He said his government had faced severe financial pressures, including revenue losses from cyclones and the COVID-19 pandemic, but had kept the State's debt below Rs 5 lakh crore and controlled the prices of essential commodities.

He claimed that rice prices had increased by up to Rs 15 per kg under the TVK government, putting an additional burden on people. "If the TVK government completes its five-year term, the State's debt will touch Rs 20 lakh crore," he said.

Palaniswami also urged the School Education Department to extend the Super Clean Super Campus Scheme to all government schools and called for phased recruitment to fill 13.30 lakh vacancies across government departments.

"We cannot fill all the vacancies overnight, but steps have to be taken in phases," he said, noting that the number of retirees also increases by around seven per cent every year.