After announcing that the Namakkal SIPCOT project will be scrapped, the Joseph Vijay TVK government has dropped the proposed Kancheepuram new town development plan, or satellite town plan, and the detailed development and heritage revitalisation plan initiated during the previous DMK government, as reported in The New Indian Express.
The Housing and Urban Development Department has rescinded its February 2023 notification for preparing the plans for the 2025-2045 period.
Housing and Urban Development Secretary R. Kirlosh Kumar said the Directorate of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) was now preparing a master plan for the Kancheepuram Local Planning Area.
According to Kumar, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) had earlier proposed a new town development plan for the same region. Since DTCP is now preparing a master plan for the area, the government decided to drop the CMDA’s proposal to avoid duplication.
The DTCP has engaged Anna University to prepare the master plan, which is expected to be completed before August 2027, Kumar said.
The Kancheepuram new town plan, notified in February 2023, was proposed to cover 36 sq km across 17 revenue villages. The CMDA had earlier cited unplanned development in Kancheepuram, including the expansion of commercial establishments and increasing traffic congestion in the core area, as reasons for proposing the plans.
The proposed detailed development plan was intended to focus on the heritage and redevelopment of Kancheepuram’s core area, while the new town development plan was aimed at developing villages along NH-48.
However, a source said little progress had been made beyond the notification. The source also indicated that some of the other new town development proposals initiated by the previous DMK government could face a similar fate.
The previous government had issued separate notifications for new town development plans for Chengalpattu as an urban centre, Thiruvallur as a knowledge hub, Thirumazhisai as an innovation city, Minjur as an industrial and port hub, and Mahabalipuram as a tourism and recreation hub.
Other proposals included developing Sriperumbudur as an industrial cluster, Maraimalai Nagar as a manufacturing hub and Parandur as an aerotropolis.
The Parandur proposal has effectively lost its basis after Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced that the proposed Parandur greenfield airport project would be dropped. The proposed aerotropolis plan was linked to the airport development.
To read about the various projects dropped, stalled, and in limbo, check our report here.
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