<p>Chennai: Determined to go ahead with a greenfield airport for Chennai in neighbouring Kanchipuram district despite protests from locals, the DMK dispensation in Tamil Nadu has fixed compensation for the land to be acquired from Rs 35 lakh up to Rs 2.57 crore per acre based on the guideline value. </p><p>The compensation package fixed for over 3,300 acres of land is about three to seven times higher than the guideline value in the area fixed by the government. </p><p>While a flat rate of Rs 35 lakh to Rs 60 lakh was fixed per acre for acquiring 1,906 acres of land whose guideline value is between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 17 lakh, compensation can be fixed through private negotiation for 374.53 acres of land.</p>.Tamil Nadu moves forward on Hosur airport, OSL survey next step.<p>In villages including Parandur, and Eganapuram, the epicentre of the anti-airport protests for the past three years, the compensation through private negotiations could be as much as Rs 2.57 crore per acre. Of the 5,000 acres needed for the project, which is likely to fructify in eight years, the government owns 1,700 acres and the remaining 3,300 acres will be acquired by residents of dozens of villages in the district. </p><p>The ”high compensation package” offered by the government which is much greater than what was promised is a clear indication that the DMK dispensation is resolute in implementing the project. </p><p>The government had in April received in-principle, approval for the project from the Civil Aviation Ministry and the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) is working on the tender to select a concessionaire to build the massive facility. </p><p>“A new airport is an absolute need of the hour for a city like Chennai which is fast expanding. With the city emerging as a major hub for global electronics manufacturers, a swanky airport will only help the state. The government is very clear that the city needs this facility,” a source told <em>DH</em>. </p><p>TIDCO is also working on a project for resettling people who will have to move from their villages for the project, which is expected to be built at a cost of Rs 20,000 crore, with have two runways, multiple terminal buildings, taxiways, aprons, and cargo terminal among other infrastructure. </p><p>For villagers in Ekanapuram, the increased compensation will not change their mind. “We're determined to oppose the project. We don’t want any monetary compensation. All we want is our land,” a villager said. The residents of Ekanapuram have been protesting against the airport for the past three years. </p><p>The location is close to the Chennai-Bengaluru National Highway and Sriperumbudur that boasts of massive industrial estates owned by the state government which plans to develop a new township around the proposed airport that would also decongest Chennai. </p><p>Though the number of flights and the daily footfall have increased manifold over the years, the city is bereft of a swanky airport like the ones Bengaluru and Hyderabad boast of. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been expanding the terminal buildings in the existing airport to cater to the ever-increasing rush but a new airport is long overdue. </p><p>The government’s 2006 plan to construct a greenfield airport in Sriperumbudur did not take off due to a slew of factors, including opposition from PMK, which was an ally of the then DMK government. Efforts by the AIADMK government between 2011 and 2021 in this regard also did not fructify. </p><p>Besides Chennai, Tamil Nadu has four operational airports – Tiruchirapalli, Madurai, Coimbatore, and Thoothukudi. The state government has now commissioned a study to explore the feasibility of setting up an airport in the industrial city of Hosur located just outside Bengaluru. </p>
<p>Chennai: Determined to go ahead with a greenfield airport for Chennai in neighbouring Kanchipuram district despite protests from locals, the DMK dispensation in Tamil Nadu has fixed compensation for the land to be acquired from Rs 35 lakh up to Rs 2.57 crore per acre based on the guideline value. </p><p>The compensation package fixed for over 3,300 acres of land is about three to seven times higher than the guideline value in the area fixed by the government. </p><p>While a flat rate of Rs 35 lakh to Rs 60 lakh was fixed per acre for acquiring 1,906 acres of land whose guideline value is between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 17 lakh, compensation can be fixed through private negotiation for 374.53 acres of land.</p>.Tamil Nadu moves forward on Hosur airport, OSL survey next step.<p>In villages including Parandur, and Eganapuram, the epicentre of the anti-airport protests for the past three years, the compensation through private negotiations could be as much as Rs 2.57 crore per acre. Of the 5,000 acres needed for the project, which is likely to fructify in eight years, the government owns 1,700 acres and the remaining 3,300 acres will be acquired by residents of dozens of villages in the district. </p><p>The ”high compensation package” offered by the government which is much greater than what was promised is a clear indication that the DMK dispensation is resolute in implementing the project. </p><p>The government had in April received in-principle, approval for the project from the Civil Aviation Ministry and the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) is working on the tender to select a concessionaire to build the massive facility. </p><p>“A new airport is an absolute need of the hour for a city like Chennai which is fast expanding. With the city emerging as a major hub for global electronics manufacturers, a swanky airport will only help the state. The government is very clear that the city needs this facility,” a source told <em>DH</em>. </p><p>TIDCO is also working on a project for resettling people who will have to move from their villages for the project, which is expected to be built at a cost of Rs 20,000 crore, with have two runways, multiple terminal buildings, taxiways, aprons, and cargo terminal among other infrastructure. </p><p>For villagers in Ekanapuram, the increased compensation will not change their mind. “We're determined to oppose the project. We don’t want any monetary compensation. All we want is our land,” a villager said. The residents of Ekanapuram have been protesting against the airport for the past three years. </p><p>The location is close to the Chennai-Bengaluru National Highway and Sriperumbudur that boasts of massive industrial estates owned by the state government which plans to develop a new township around the proposed airport that would also decongest Chennai. </p><p>Though the number of flights and the daily footfall have increased manifold over the years, the city is bereft of a swanky airport like the ones Bengaluru and Hyderabad boast of. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been expanding the terminal buildings in the existing airport to cater to the ever-increasing rush but a new airport is long overdue. </p><p>The government’s 2006 plan to construct a greenfield airport in Sriperumbudur did not take off due to a slew of factors, including opposition from PMK, which was an ally of the then DMK government. Efforts by the AIADMK government between 2011 and 2021 in this regard also did not fructify. </p><p>Besides Chennai, Tamil Nadu has four operational airports – Tiruchirapalli, Madurai, Coimbatore, and Thoothukudi. The state government has now commissioned a study to explore the feasibility of setting up an airport in the industrial city of Hosur located just outside Bengaluru. </p>