Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Monday shelved the proposed Rs 27,000-crore Parandur greenfield airport project amid protests by locals over its environmental impact, even as the Opposition DMK called the move an “irreversible setback” for the state’s growth.Locals have long objected to the airport plan citing environmental concerns and danger to multi-crop agricultural lands in Parandur, some 70 km from the state capital Chennai.Vijay had campaigned hard against the project before the assembly election that eventually ejected the DMK from power.”We are dropping the Parandur airport. I stand firm with the protesters against the proposed airport,” he said in the assembly.The Ministry of Civil Aviation had given in-principle permission in April 2025 to build the airport in Parandur, which comes under Kanchipuram district.Just after coming to power, the Vijay-led TVK government had said it would review the site earmarked for the proposed greenfield airport. In June, TVK leader CTR Nirmal Kumar had announced a comprehensive review of the proposed project to find alternative locations. This would help protect local waterbodies and fertile lands, he had said.The decision brings to an end a project planned over 5,746 acres in Kanchipuram district and resisted for years by residents of Ekanapuram and surrounding villages.Meenambakkam airport, Vijay said, currently has a capacity for 30 million passengers annually, while Chennai’s expansion as an industrial and commercial centre is increasing demands for passenger and cargo capacity.“I am well aware of industrial development and the role airports play in it. I extend it my complete support. But this project should not come up at Parandur,” he said.DMK chief MK Stalin slammed the decision, calling it an “irreversible setback” for the state’s growth.In a long post on X, he said dropping the project would set Tamil Nadu’s development back by several years. “Dropping Parandur is not change. It’s an irreversible setback for Tamil Nadu’s growth,” he said.Stalin said Tamil Nadu’s interests could not be “mortgaged for petty political considerations” and questioned the manner in which the decision was announced.He said a project of such importance required discussion and consultation.Stalin, who lost his own seat in the Tamil Nadu election, said the decision was of far-reaching importance and that announcing it without allowing a debate was deeply troubling. He argued that the state’s position as a leading state in sectors, including electronics exports and automobiles, made a world-class airport in its capital essential.The proposed Parandur airport was planned as one of Tamil Nadu’s largest infrastructure projects, with an ultimate capacity of 100 million passengers a year to meet Chennai’s long-term aviation requirements.