Government Reviewing Pattinapakkam Site for New Secretariat, Minister Says After Fishermen Protest

The Tamil Nadu government is reviewing its proposal to build a new Secretariat at Pattinapakkam in Chennai, Minister Nirmal Kumar said on Thursday, September 24, amid sustained opposition from fishing communities and Opposition parties.

Asked whether the government had withdrawn its decision to build the complex at Pattinapakkam, the Minister did not say the project had been scrapped, stating instead that work on the proposed Secretariat was under review and that the government was studying possible locations within the city.

The original plan envisaged a 15-storey Secretariat on about 25 acres at Pattinapakkam at an estimated cost of Rs 1,200 crore.

More than 1,000 fishermen and residents representing over ten fishing villages gathered at the Marina to oppose the proposal, saying it could affect traditional fishing activities, coastal access and the livelihoods of nearly 1,500 fishing families. They demanded that the government withdraw the proposal and warned of wider protests if their concerns were not addressed.

The project has drawn opposition from both major Opposition parties. DMK president M.K. Stalin earlier this week warned of a mass protest alongside fishermen if the plan was not dropped, while AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami has called the project unaffordable and unsuitable for a site with fishing hamlets, homes and schools.