The Hindu Business Line : Chennai airport expansion soon, says Maran

Mr Maran told reporters on the sidelines of a function here that the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Mr M. Karunanidhi, had decided that the existing airport would be expanded in such a manner without affecting the neighbourhood.

Mr Maran said this while discussing the infrastructure problems of the city, but said he did not want to divulge more details about the airport plan at this stage.

He said the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister had formed special groups to look into the problem of road congestion in the city. "We must learn from Bangalore," Mr Maran said, referring to the infrastructure problems faced there.

Mr Maran said infrastructure bottlenecks would need to be cleared to attract investments. In this connection, he said the State Government was making efforts to develop Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchi into IT hubs.

On the issue of clearances for Special Economic Zones in the State, Mr Maran said that he, along with the other members of the Empowered Committee of Group of Ministers, would impress upon the Prime Minister the need for speedy clearance of at least those projects where `land' was not an issue.

Observing that there are about 20 SEZ proposals in Tamil Nadu, Mr Maran said that land would not be an issue in the State, because most of the land was already acquired by the State Government.

Earlier, speaking at the launch of a new company called Kerry Reliable Logistics Pvt Ltd, Mr Maran observed that land prices were going up irrationally.

He said that in a few places, some property dealers were trying to prop up prices in some areas by spreading rumours that he (Mr Maran) himself had bought lands in those areas.

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Chennai airport expansion soon, says Maran

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