Ravichandran, Chairman, CII Southern Region addressing a press conference | Photo Credit: RAGU R

Amid uncertainty over whether the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government in Tamil Nadu would proceed with the proposed greenfield airport at Parandur, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has reiterated the need for a second airport for Chennai. We will respect whatever decision the State government ultimately takes, it added.

The South has some of the best airports in the country. We have world-class airports in Bengaluru and Hyderabad, and Tamil Nadu deserves to be in the top three and not in the top seven, P Ravichandran, Chairman, CII Southern Region and President of Danfoss India, said.

Addressing his maiden press conference after assuming office as Chairman of CII SR, Ravichandran underscored the importance of strengthening Tamil Nadu’s aviation infrastructure.

“We don’t know what stand the government will take on Parandur greenfield airport project. Whatever they decide, we need to respect that decision. We did not discuss this issue when the CII delegation met Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay recently,” he added.

When asked specifically about CII’s position on the Parandur airport project, Ravichandran said the industry body had not engaged with the government on the issue. “We have not had any dialogue with the government on this topic. But our view is that we should really have a very strong airport as a gateway to Tamil Nadu, and it is highly due,” he said.

Economic growth ambitions

Speaking about CII’s recent interaction with the Chief Minister, Ravichandran said discussions focused on Tamil Nadu’s economic growth ambitions. To achieve the current government’s goal of $1.5-trillion economy by 2036, Tamil Nadu’s Gross State Domestic Product has to multiply by 3.5 to 3.8 times its current size; this would require annual growth of about 12-13 per cent over the next decade, he said.

One of CII’s recommendations to the Chief Minister was to leverage his personal brand to strengthen Tamil Nadu’s investment appeal. “The Chief Minister has a strong brand as a person. The government should look at how Tamil Nadu can be branded around that strength to attract significantly more investments into the State,” Ravichandran said.

For 2026-27, CII Southern Region has adopted the theme, “Accelerating South India’s Competitiveness: Growth, Resilience, Inclusion, Sustainability, Trust.”

Highlighting CII’s policy engagement efforts, Ravichandran said the industry body submitted 159 representations to State governments during the previous year, of which 41 were accepted or partially accepted.

Published on June 2, 2026