'Not On Our To-Do List': Nara Lokesh On Sri City Airport Proposal For Chennai

Andhra Pradesh IT and Industries Minister Nara Lokesh's tongue-in-cheek rejection of a socail medai proposal for an airport at Sri City to serve Chennai has set off a political and economic debate online after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay scrapped the proposed Parandur greenfield airport project.

Responded to a post suggesting that Sri City could emerge as an alternative airport hub for Chennai passengers, Lokesh wrote: "Between Amaravati, Polavaram and 3 economic regions, we have enough development to do in AP already! This is not on our 'to-do' list. Respectfully, we will pass on this."

Between Amaravati, Polavaram and 3 economic regions, we have enough development to do in AP already! This is not on our ‘to-do' list. Respectfully, we will pass on this. 🙏 😂 https://t.co/f4oxUS1y99

— Lokesh Nara (@naralokesh) August 24, 2026

The post quickly went viral, with many users interpreting it as a political jab at the neighbouring Tamil Nadu government's handling of Chennai's airport expansion plans.

On Monday, Vijay dropped the Parandur airport project, which had been planned as Chennai's second major airport.

The Chief Minister said the government would instead identify an alternative site that causes less disruption to agricultural land and residential areas. The existing Chennai airport is also set to be expanded, including a proposed fifth terminal.

Defending the decision in the Assembly, Vijay said, "We are dropping Parandur airport. I stand firm with the protesters against the proposed airport."

The move has drawn criticism from several quarters.

Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin described its as an "irreversible setback" to the State's growth, while IPS officer-turned-politician K. Annamalai said identifying a new site and completing land acquisition and approvals could take at least another decade.

Political commentator Sumanth Raman called it "a real disaster for Tamil Nadu", arguing that finding an alternative site and completing the approvals could push the project back by years.

Another political commentator S. Gurumurthy also warned of a prolonged impact on Chennai's development, with his remarks being widely circulated in the online debate.

As criticism mounted in Tamil Nadu, the discussion soon took an Andhra Pradesh turn, with social-media users speculating whether Sri City, located near the Tamil Nadu border and home to a large industrial ecosystem, could become as an alternative aviation gateway for Chennai.

Sri city, a major industrial hub on the Chennai-Kolkata NH-16, is around 55 km from Tamil Nadu's capital city.

For now, Lokesh's response may have grounded the social media proposal, but the airport debate has taken off as a political talking point across the two neighbouring states.